Freedom of Expression and Events of Major Importance: An Analysis of the Issues in Union des associations européennes de football (UEFA) v European Commission in the context New Zealand

This paper discusses the context of a Directive of the European Union which allowed for events of major importance to society to be listed and televised in a manner deemed appropriate by Member States. Union des associations européennes de football challenged the validity of the acceptance of the list of the United Kingdom by the European Commission in 2007. The challenge questioned whether the entirety of the European Championship finals could be included in the list given that this appeared to breach multiple rights and all the matches may not be of major importance.  The General Court of Europe and the Court of Justice of the European Union both found for the United Kingdom, highlighting that their powers were limited in respect of the current action. In doing so the courts left open the question of whether the designation properly balanced relevant rights. As every nation has a different context that may influence the balancing of these rights, any decision on the validity of the designation would have to consider large quantities of information. This paper aims to discuss the designation of the EURO championships in light of the circumstances of New Zealand.