Court of Appeal upholds fine for Croatian Handball Federation

The Croatian Handball Federation appealed a decision taken by the Court of Handball on 25 July 2016 with which a fine of €24,000 had been imposed on the federation for having failed to deliver a TV satellite signal at the Women’s EHF EURO 2016 Qualification match between Croatia and FYR Macedonia on 5 June 2016.

The Court of Appeal has decided to reject the Croatian federation's appeal. The first instance decision is upheld.

With regards to the type and extent of the sanction, the Court of Appeal finds that the Court of Handball has rightly taken into consideration the subjective and objective elements of the case.

In that regard, the Court of Appeal agrees with that the violation is a serious one since the production of an international TV signal is elementary and fundamental to ensure the presence of the sport and its actors as well as of all its economic stakeholders.

Finally, the Court of Appeal observed that the amount defined is within the lower range of possibilities set forth in Article D.1 f) of the EHF List of Penalties and part of it has been imposed on a suspended basis.

Consequently, the EHF Court of Appeal finds the sanction proportionate and adequate, hence the decision of the Court of Handball is confirmed. The federation must pay a fine of €24,000, half of which is being imposed on a suspended basis for a period of two years.

A recourse to the EHF Court of Arbitration may be filed within twenty-one days but shall not have any suspensive effect.