Some 100 citizens, sport officials, civil servants from national ministries and the EU as well as athletes discussed the results of the EU-wide discussion project on the future of sport in Europe, entitled “EU:SPORT:FUTURE” and organised in Oeiras, Portugal, on 30^th October, in the framework of the 12^th ENGSO Forum.

Birgitta Kervinen, ENGSO President, announced at the closing of the conference: “The EU:SPORT:FUTURE declaration, being the result of the active involvement of more than 1000 participants in the online questionnaire, workshops and final conference, has been adopted unanimously by the seven project partners. We now hope that the EU will take these recommendations into consideration when it starts discussing the shaping of the EU sport policy.”

When deliberating on the EU:SPORT:FUTURE declaration a French participant stated: “It's high time for the European Union to deal with sport and to have launched this discussion project and reflection on the future of sport in Europe. Let’s hope that these discussions on the future of sport in Europe will not stop but continue in this productive way.”

The EU:SPORT:FUTURE participants recommend to declare 2014 as the European Year of Sport and Physical Activity who considered the simultaneous start of the European Sport Programme in 2014 – ten years after the European Year of Education through Sport 2004 as a particular boost for the  promotion of sport and its positive effects on society at EU level. Furthermore, networks and exchange of good practices in various sport fields (volunteering, health, societal role of sport, education and employment) should be supported by the European Union.

The EU:SPORT:FUTURE declaration will be forwarded to the European Parliament, governments of the 27 EU Member States and European and national sport umbrella organisations.

The EU:SPORT:FUTURE project was a discussion project on the future of sport in Europe in view of the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty including the article on sport. The project focused on five topics: health, volunteering, society, employment and education. Citizens developed during the workshops ideas what the EU shall do in these fields, once it has gained the sport competence through the legal recognition of sport in the Lisbon Treaty.

EU:SPORT:FUTURE declaration

Final conference