On 14 October 2026, the European Commission published its Sixth Annual Report on the screening of foreign direct investments into the European Union (the “Report”), covering developments in 2025.

Key takeaways:

  • Notifications continue to rise, reaching a record 4,773 in 2025. With still over a third found to be out of scope (33% in 2024 and 35% in 2025), the figures suggest that investors tend to “over-notify” when faced with regimes of uncertain scope.
  • Review outcomes have remained stable, with very few outright prohibitions, although the bar for blocking investments may be lowering.
  • The number of cases going through the EU Cooperation Mechanism has increased sharply (by c. 40%) and largely reflects the general rise in caseload (+52%) rather than enhanced pan-EU cooperation between national screening authorities.
  • The EU screening landscape remains in flux, with further legislative changes expected over the next 15 months as Member States adapt their regimes to the New EU FDI Screening Regulation.
Continue Reading EU’s Sixth FDI Annual Report – Key Trends in EU Screening Activities

On September 16, 2026, European Commission President von der Leyen opened her annual State of the Union address with the warning that “[a] fight for industrial capacities is shaping global competition“. Her speech indicated how the European Commission intends to respond to concerns about European competitiveness and economic security. Those priorities already appear in reforms and proposals such as the Draft Merger Guidelines and the proposed Industrial Accelerator Act (“Draft IAA”), alongside broader changes to foreign investment screening across the EU. The address therefore offers a useful guide to the considerations likely to shape EU merger control, competition enforcement and Member State investment screening. This post distils the implications for investors and businesses active in the EU.

Key Points

  • Competitiveness, resilience and economic security will shape EU merger control to some degree, as reflected in the Draft Merger Guidelines’ focus on scale, innovation and security of supply, as well as competition enforcement and foreign investment screening.
  • Foreign investment policy will continue to scrutinise strategic sectors and technologies—including AI, semiconductors, critical minerals, energy and defence—while enabling partnerships that build capacity, diversify supply chains and strengthen resilience.
  • Trusted international partnerships will increasingly shape foreign investment assessments, with greater weight on investors’ jurisdictions and strategic alignment with EU industrial policy.
  • Climate change and AI are identified as “tipping points” driving regulatory focus across sectors including energy and water infrastructure, agriculture and food, health, transport, advanced manufacturing, and defence and space.
Continue Reading President von der Leyen’s 2026 State of the Union Address – Decoding the Competition and Foreign Investment Implications

Executive Summary

  • Geopolitical developments are driving significant investment into the defense sectors in Europe. Acquisitions and investments in these sectors are likely to require multiple regulatory approvals across merger control, foreign investment / national security control, and foreign subsidies.
  • Merger control across the EU and UK is becoming more accommodating for defense deals, with the Commission’s new ‘theory of benefit’ framework and the CMA’s efficiencies guidance expressly recognizing defense readiness, innovation, and scale as part of the competitive assessment.
  • Foreign investment screening is moving in the opposite direction — the revised EU FDI Screening Regulation mandates screening in all Member States and even allied-nation investors face increased scrutiny, as recent cases demonstrate.
  • The EU’s Foreign Subsidies Regulation (“FSR”) is a further regulatory process that investors may need to navigate, introducing additional deal timing and execution risks.
  • Successful deal execution requires an integrated regulatory strategy addressing merger control, FDI screening, and the FSR in parallel — each with distinct logic, timelines, and risk profiles that may require extensive commitments to mitigate.
Continue Reading Navigating European Regulatory Regimes for Defense Sector Investments and Deals

Introduction

In the space of just one week, the EU’s top court, the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”), delivered two important judgments that clarify the scope of sport rule-making activities that can benefit from an antitrust exemption: the ROGON judgment on 9 July 2026, and the much more detailed RRC Sports judgment on 16 July 2026, which builds on and develops ROGON.  The sporting rules at play in these cases concerned football players’ agents, and more specifically those adopted by the German Football Association (ROGON judgment), and FIFA (RRC Sports judgment).  However, the principles set out in the ROGON and RRC Sports judgments will resonate beyond sport arenas to find potential application to rule-making by self-regulatory bodies in other sectors. 

Key Takeaways

  • The EU’s so-called ‘Meca Medina’ antitrust exemption can cover rules destined to ensure a league’s proper operation.  The ECJ recognizes that sports leagues operate as “ecosystems” and inevitably will need to adopt restrictions to ensure the proper functioning of such ecosystems.  It implies that the specificities of professional sport, where driven by public policy considerations, may justify exempting activities that would otherwise remain caught by the EU antitrust laws (Article 101 TFEU).
  • The Meca Medina antitrust exemption can apply to any part of these “ecosystems”.  The ECJ confirms that this exemption is not confined to league rules governing its members (aka clubs and players); it can also apply to league rules governing services rendered by other participants in the ecosystem, such as agents.
  • Determining whether a sporting rule qualifies for the Meca Medina antitrust exemption requires an individual assessment.  The ECJ looks at each agent-related rule or set of rules regulating the same aspect to determine whether it restricted competition by its very object and, if not, could meet the other conditions to get immunity from the EU antitrust laws.  In conducting this assessment, the ECJ gives a strong steer that most of the agent rules at play should not constitute “by object” restrictions and therefore could qualify for Meca Medina immunity.   
  • The Meca Medina antitrust exemption can only apply to sporting rules that pursue a public interest objective, making it critical to identify the dividing line between purely commercial objectives and public interest objectives.  That said, the exemption can apply to dual-faced sporting rules, namely rules that pursue both a public interest and a commercial objectives.      
  • The Meca Medina antitrust exemption is not limited to the rules on restrictive agreements (Article 101 TFEU) – it can also apply to single firm conduct (Article 102 TFEU) and restrictions to the EU free movement rules.  In the wake of its Superleague judgment, the ECJ aligns the analytic framework across both Article 101 and Article 102 TFEU.  The ECJ also confirms that this alignment extends to the EU free movement rules, such that the Meca Medina antitrust exemption can exempt impediments to the freedom to provide services protected by Article 56 TFEU.
Continue Reading ROGON and RRC Sports: The EU’s Top Court vindicates a pragmatic application of the antitrust sporting exemption to players’ agent regulations

For more than twenty years, FIFA’s Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (“RSTP”) have sought to balance the stability of football teams with player mobility. That balance was fundamentally challenged by the European Court of Justice (“ECJ” or the “Court”) in Case C-650/22 FIFA v Diarra (“Diarra”).

Less than two years later, on 10 June 2026, FIFA approved a new version of the RSTP due to officially enter into force on 1 January 2027.

The reform represents the most comprehensive overhaul of the transfer system since the introduction of the modern RSTP in 2001. While it responds directly to Diarra, it also reflects the ECJ’s insistence – primarily expressed in Superleague – that sports governing bodies must pursue legitimate objectives through rules that are transparent, objective and proportionate. Moreover, alongside the substantive amendments to the RSTP, FIFA introduced a new governance model under which future changes to the RSTP will be developed through structured social dialogue among players, clubs and leagues.

This blog examines the key EU competition law and free movement implications of the new RSTP. In particular, it considers how the revised rules reflect the principles identified in previous ECJ case law and how they reshape the competitive and regulatory framework governing player transfers.

Continue Reading From Diarra to FIFA’s New Player Transfer System: How EU Law is Reshaping Football’s Transfer Rules and Governance

I. Introduction

On 3 August 2026, the President of the EU General Court issued an order addressing the scope of legal privilege under EU law. The order dismissed Broadcom’s application to suspend a decision by the European Commission requiring the production of documents in its investigation into Broadcom’s allegedly abusive software licensing practices.

The purpose of Broadcom’s application for interim measures was to enable it to withhold certain documents until the EU General Court rules on the main appeal against the decision.  In the main appeal, Broadcom had argued that the Commission’s decision was unlawful in so far as it compelled the production of documents that were privileged under the laws of third countries, such as the United States.

Although issued in interim proceedings and on well-established points of law, the order provides welcome guidance on the right balance between the European Commission’s investigative powers and the parties’ rights of defence. The President of the EU General Court highlights with unprecedented clarity the fundamental importance of legal privilege as a core part of procedural fairness in EU competition investigations.

That reasoning, and the further discussion on the European Commission’s practice in relation to legal advice from non-EU external lawyers, should help companies navigate the complexities of maintaining privilege over legal advice they receive, especially in global competition investigations.

Continue Reading In or out?  Navigating Legal Privilege in EU Competition Investigations post-Broadcom

Introduction

On August 5, 2026, NHV Group announced that its proposed acquisition by GD Helicopter Finance (“GDHF”), ultimately controlled by China-based GDAT Group, would not proceed after Belgian authorities blocked the transaction under Belgium’s foreign direct investment screening regime, following a review coordinated by the Interfederal Screening Committee (“ISC”). This marks the first public prohibition under Belgium’s foreign direct investment screening mechanism, which has been operational since July 1, 2023. The Committee did not publish detailed reasons for the decision.

While noteworthy, this should not be misread as a shift toward protectionism. Belgium’s FDI statistics show the regime has been overwhelmingly supportive of transactions. The NHV/GDHF case illustrates the regime’s core security function: transactions where critical infrastructure intersects with a geopolitically sensitive investor profile are at the heart of the ISC’s mandate. At the same time, the case sharpens existing criticisms of the regime’s opacity and complexity—criticisms that Belgian authorities are now actively addressing through a public consultation and upcoming EU-level harmonization.

Continue Reading First Prohibition Under Belgium’s FDI Regime: A Milestone, Not a Revolution

On 29 April 2026, the European Commission (“Commission”) adopted its Communication establishing the “Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework” (“METSAF”). The Communication introduces a new State aid framework to mitigate the consequences of the energy price spikes and supply chain disruptions caused by the ongoing hostilities in Iran and the wider region, and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz (the “Middle East Crisis”). The framework applies from 1 March 2026 to 31 December 2026.

Key takeaways

  • The METSAF is a temporary instrument that makes State aid rules more flexible with the aim of counterbalancing the ongoing energy price spikes due to the Middle East Crisis.
  • Under the METSAF, Member States may exceptionally seek the Commission’s approval to partially compensate companies active in the land transport (rail, road and inland waterways), intra-EU short sea shipping services, agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture sectors to cover extra-costs of fuel or fertilisers incurred due to the Middle East Crisis.
  • Additionally, the METSAF allows Member States to increase the aid intensity of electricity price relief schemes for energy-intensive users under the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework (“CISAF”) (see our previous blog).
Continue Reading The Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF)

What’s changing, and why is it important?

In July 2026, the Ministry of Economy & Tourism of the United Arab Emirates (the “Ministry” and “UAE”) published its Guidelines on Relevant Market Definition (the “Guidelines”), providing a detailed look into the Ministry’s framework for market definition assessment. The Ministry considers market definition to be a “fundamental pillar” to the competitive assessment across all competition enforcement contexts and a “crucial stage” in competition enforcement.

The issuance of the Guidelines marks a further important step in the implementation of the UAE’s competition law regime. It follows the introduction of revised merger control thresholds in 2025 and the adoption in April 2026 of implementing regulations for the 2023 Federal Competition Law (see our previous blog on these reforms).

The Guidelines are particularly important for the UAE’s merger control regime, where filing obligations are dependent on parties meeting revenue and/or market share thresholds in the “relevant market” in the UAE. The introduction of the Guidelines provides a crucial tool to merging parties and advisers for determining when transactions may require mandatory notification to the Ministry. More substantively, the Guidelines will provide an important source to help merging parties prepare the “economic report” on the competitive effects of a merger required by the UAE merger notification rules. Beyond merger control, the Guidelines will also provide an important tool for self-assessment of behavioural competition law compliance.

Continue Reading UAE Antitrust Regime Marks an Important Step with the Introduction of Market Definition Guidelines

On 30 April 2026, the Court of Justice of the EU (the “Court”) delivered its judgment in Case C‑133/24 CD Tondela and Others (“Tondela”). The case arose from a preliminary ruling request submitted by a Portuguese court concerning a no-poach agreement entered into by Portuguese professional football clubs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This…

Continue Reading Tondela (Case C‑133/24): No-Poach Agreements in Sport: Context Always Matters