The Saudi Sports Arbitration Center Organizes A Dialogue Session On The Challenges Facing Gulf Sports Arbitration Centers

The Saudi Sports Arbitration Center organized a dialogue session titled “Challenges Facing Gulf Sports Arbitration Centers,” with the participation of a distinguished group of presidents and secretaries-general of sports arbitration centers from the GCC countries. The session was held via videoconference as part of efforts to enhance cooperation and exchange expertise among Gulf arbitration centers.

The session, which was attended by a distinguished group of specialists and officials in the field of sports arbitration, discussed a range of legislative, practical, and media-related challenges facing sports arbitration centers, in addition to reviewing various Gulf experiences in managing sports disputes and enforcing arbitral awards.

Participants included Dr. Mohammed bin Nasser Bassam, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Center for Sports Arbitration; Professor Dr. Abdullah Al-Hayyan, Member of the Board of Directors of the Court of Arbitration for Sport; Dr. Abdulwahab Sadiq, Vice Chairman of the National Sports Arbitration Authority in the State of Kuwait; Mr. Salman Al-Ansari, Secretary General of the Qatar Sports Arbitration Foundation; and Mr. Abdulwahab Al-Hanai, Chairman of the Omani Committee for Sports Dispute Resolution and Arbitration. The session was moderated by Dr. Najlaa Al-Haqil, Member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Center for Sports Arbitration.

The participants emphasized the importance of sports arbitration as a fundamental pillar for ensuring justice and stability within the sports ecosystem, highlighting the pivotal role played by arbitration centers in resolving disputes and the challenges they face, which require practical solutions aligned with the requirements of sustainable development in the sports sector.

Dr. Mohammed Bassam reviewed the current state of sports arbitration centers in the region and the challenges associated with the evolution of the sports system. He pointed to the issuance of the Sports Law in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and its role in reinforcing the importance of sports arbitration and its impact on how centers handle cases, particularly those related to sports investment. He stressed the need for centers to be fully prepared to address investment-related disputes and underscored the importance of maintaining a balanced media presence for arbitration centers as neutral judicial bodies. This includes leveraging official social media accounts and the center’s developed website, which enables the public to follow the progress of sports disputes from the submission of arbitration requests through to the issuance and publication of rulings, thereby enhancing transparency and ease of access to information and services.

For his part, Professor Dr. Abdullah Al-Hayyan noted that legal culture represents the most significant challenge, emphasizing the need to firmly establish the principle that an arbitrator is not an advocate for any party but an independent judge. This necessitates intensifying training and awareness programs, as well as educating disputing parties and the sports community to protect arbitrators from undue pressure. He also called for the publication of arbitral decisions as legal references and their exchange among Gulf arbitration centers, noting that the enforcement of arbitral awards remains one of the key challenges despite the legal independence of sports arbitration.

In the same context, Mr. Abdulwahab Al-Hanai discussed the experience of the Sultanate of Oman, stressing the importance of restructuring the sports arbitration system, addressing disparities in operational mechanisms and judicial frameworks, and establishing clear legislative regulation for litigation and enforcement of awards. He highlighted the success of the Omani experience in coordinating between the dispute resolution committee and sports sectors, as well as separating ordinary judiciary proceedings from sports-related disputes.

Meanwhile, Dr. Abdulwahab Sadiq outlined the challenges facing sports arbitration in Kuwait, particularly regarding the mechanisms for selecting arbitrators and the lack of experience among some heads of arbitral tribunals. He affirmed ongoing efforts to develop procedures that ensure transparency and impartiality and to address challenges related to the enforcement of awards, which in some cases require intervention by ordinary courts, alongside attempts to amend relevant regulations.

Mr. Salman Al-Ansari noted that Qatari law recognizes sports arbitration decisions; however, the main challenge lies in the limited availability of local expertise, which has led to reliance on arbitrators from the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He also highlighted the need to raise awareness among clubs, players, and administrators regarding the importance of sports arbitration.

The session also discussed the requirements for sports arbitration centers to achieve leadership and excellence. Speakers emphasized the importance of building a new generation of arbitrators, enhancing legal awareness and expertise, mandating training programs and professional licensing for arbitrators, strengthening partnerships with international arbitration centers, and cooperating with universities to offer academic programs in sports law that contribute to qualifying arbitrators and lawyers.

At the conclusion of the session, participants stressed the importance of strategic partnerships and the establishment of a unified Gulf platform for exchanging experiences and best practices, developing joint action plans with clear objectives, and enhancing media communication through official channels of arbitration centers to achieve transparency without compromising the confidentiality of pending cases. The session affirmed that advancing Gulf sports arbitration requires legislative, professional, and media integration to strengthen confidence in arbitral decisions and support the sustainability and stability of the sports sector in the region.

It is worth noting that this session forms part of the efforts of the Saudi Center for Sports Arbitration to enhance professional dialogue and the exchange of Gulf arbitration expertise, and to discuss the key challenges facing the sports arbitration system, in support of developing the legal and regulatory environment of this vital sector