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Study on gender-based violence in sports

Following an invitation from the Council of the European Union in 2015, the Directorate-General for Education and Culture (DG-EAC) asked the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) to launch a study to assess the nature and extent of gender-based violence in sport in the EU. This study aimed specifically at:

  • Describing the situation regarding gender-based violence in sport at elite and amateur level by mapping and collecting secondary data in all EU Member States
  • Providing an overview of existing measures and legal frameworks on this topic identifying best practices in combating gender-based violence in sporting environments
  • Providing recommendations for policy-makers and relevant (sport) stakeholders to combat gender-based violence in sport

This study constituted the first attempt to better define and measure the scope of gender-based violence in professional and grassroots sports across the 28 EU Member States.

The data collection was carried out by national researchers between January and April 2016, and comprised a web-based search, complemented with semi-structural interviews, consultations with stakeholders and experts, and a literature review. The mapping exercise covered the international European and EU Member State levels. The information and data gathered at each of these levels covered: existing research on the magnitude of gender-based violence in sports, the legal and policy frameworks, as well as promising practices in the field of prevention of gender-based violence in sport.

The overall analysis of the collected data allowed for an assessment of the state-of-play in the EU Member States, considering the “six Ps framework”, which comprises Prevalence, Prevention, Protection, Prosecution, Provision of services and Partnerships.

Thirteen best practices in the field of prevention of gender-based violence in sport were selected against a set of qualitative criteria defined during the study. An online consultation and an expert consultation meeting were organised to discuss and agree on a final set of qualitative criteria to assess best practices. These include effectiveness, transferability, resilience, visibility of actions and informed design.

You can find the full report here.