ESKARIAM defends the interests of several basketball clubs against the Association of Basketball Clubs (ACB) arising from a violation of Article 1 of Law 15/2007, dated 3 July, on the Defence of Competition.
According to the CNMC resolution dated 11 April 2017, the agreements of the ACB General Assembly that established the economic-administrative conditions for promotion and participation in the ACB League (entry fee, FRAD and bank guarantees) constituted a collusive agreement attributable to an “association of companies”, due to being disproportionate, inequitable and discriminatory conditions that prevented and restricted the competition of basketball clubs that had acquired the right to be promoted from the LEB ORO League to the ACB League based on sporting merits.
After evidencing the anti-competitive purpose of the restrictive conditions, the CNMC also confirmed the detrimental effects on competition, consisting of a reduction in competitive and economic dynamic activity in the ACB League, as well as a fossilisation of this competition due to the low number of promotions and relegations that occurred in the previous years of the sanctioned period.
The sanctioned conduct affected the entire national market and took place over 25 years, from July 1992 (promotions for the 1992/1993 season) to 2017, causing damage to the affected basketball clubs. The CNMC resolution dated 11 April 2017 is now final following the issuance of the Supreme Court ruling dated 26 June 2023, which considered the accusations against CNMC's to the ACB under Article 1 on Legislation on the Defence of Competition to be correct.
