A hearing on "violence in sport and safeguarding" was held at the UK Parliament, on 1 June 2023, as part of the work of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). The hearing aimed to address abuse in sport and ensure the safety of athletes. Athletes who have experienced or are fighting against abuse, as well as officials from FIFA and the International Olympic Committee, participated. The hearing, organised by PACE's Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media, discussed measures to prevent sexual, physical, and emotional abuse in sport, including the potential establishment of a global "Safe Sport Entity." The event  featured two panels with international experts, including Alexandre Husting, Chair of the Governing Board of the Council of Europe's Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS).

The Council of Europe recognises the prevalence of abuse and harassment in sport and has actively worked to combat the issue through its intergovernmental networks. EPAS facilitates cooperation between Member States' public authorities in the field of sport, and promotes dialogue between public authorities, sports federations, and NGOs. This contributes to improved governance and aims to make sport more ethical, inclusive, and safe.

The revised European Sports Charter urges stakeholders to protect individuals, especially young people, from violence, harassment, and abuse in sport. The EPAS “Start to Talk” project is currently supporting national authorities in developing roadmaps for the implementation of child safeguarding policies, including the setting up of Child Safeguarding Officer roles in sport. This project implements the methodology developed within the EU-CoE joint project “Child Safeguarding in Sport”. A Pool of international experts in safe sport has also been established to ensure that best practice initiatives are widely shared.

The hearing is part of the report "Protecting human rights in and through sport: obligations and shared responsibilities," currently being prepared by the Committee for future debate in the Assembly.

Watch the hearing:

•  Session 1 : Understanding violence in sport
•  Session 2 : Adressing violence in sport