European football leagues, including Spain's La Liga, along with the International Federation of Professional Footballers (FIFPro), filed a complaint against FIFA with the European Commission on Monday. They accused FIFA of abusing its dominant position in community football when it comes to setting the schedules for various competitions.

The complaint outlines how FIFA's imposition of decisions regarding the international calendar constitutes an abuse of its dominant position and violates European Union legislation. "Recent jurisprudence makes it clear that FIFA must exercise its regulatory functions transparently, objectively, non-discriminatorily, and proportionately to mitigate its conflict of interest," the plaintiffs stated in a press release.

At a press conference in Brussels titled "Protecting Player Health and Safeguarding the Sustainability of National Leagues in Europe Against FIFA's Abusive Conduct," representatives from FIFPro Europe, La Liga, and the Premier League, among others, accused FIFA of failing to engage in dialogue with national leagues to coordinate international competition schedules.

La Liga President Javier Tebas questioned whether FIFA and UEFA are "making proper use of a position that the Court of Justice of the European Union has recognized as a monopoly," asserting that both institutions, "key to the development of football," are exercising abuse of their dominant position.

"It is surprising that, after nine months of very important resolutions regarding the governance of football in Europe, FIFA has not heard or read the message being sent," Tebas emphasized.

The La Liga president mentioned that he "sits at the table" with football unions in Spain to negotiate the calendar and stressed that "the same should happen globally." He lamented that football is still governed by "the same rules as ten years ago," when, in his view, it is no longer the same sport.

"We want a transparent process; we want agreements, not just consultations. We want a calendar that is sustainable for players and domestic leagues," summarized Mathieu Moreuil, the Premier League's director of international relations, who regretted that there has never been a "positive response" from FIFA when they sought to initiate dialogue.

"We have no more days left on the calendar," added the representative from English football, highlighting the health risks to players posed by the overcrowding of match dates due to competitions like the Nations League, the Club World Cup with an "expanded window" affecting domestic competitions, and a World Cup with more teams or additional group stage matches in the Champions League.