Ahead of the upcoming presidential elections of the European Esports Federation (EEF), scheduled for July 9 in Kosovo, tensions are rising. Representatives of a majority of national federations are accusing the current leadership of gross violations of the statute, manipulation, and interference in the electoral process.
Ukraine’s candidate for the presidency is Denys Davydov. According to his team, the election is being prepared with numerous procedural violations that could significantly affect the outcome. Delegates have yet to receive the official agenda, the list of candidates, minutes, or decisions of the Board of Directors regarding the voting procedure. Some decisions concerning the election process were adopted as far back as autumn 2024 without proper notification to the national federations. Even formal requests from lawyers, acting under powers of attorney, have gone unanswered and the relevant documents have not been provided.
A matter of serious concern is the disqualification of delegates from Malta and Belgium — despite the fact that their nominations were approved by the respective national federations in accordance with internal regulations. Under the EEF Statute, national federations have the exclusive right to nominate delegates, and interference from the Federation’s leadership constitutes a direct violation of the principle of sports autonomy. The justification for disqualification was based on a legal interpretation by a Polish lawyer, which is not a court ruling but rather a subjective opinion that contradicts both the EEF Statute and European legal standards.
Another issue is the admission of the United Kingdom as a separate voting member of the Federation, despite Wales already holding full membership. This undermines the fundamental “one country — one vote” principle enshrined in the Statute. Dual representation from a single sovereign entity — the United Kingdom — creates a precedent that could seriously distort the election results. Such a practice goes against European law and international sports standards, including the principles of the IOC, WADA, and rulings of the European Court of Justice.
Denys Davydov’s team also reports attempts to discredit him as a candidate — through administrative pressure and unofficial phone calls to delegates, in which he is described as a “mafia representative” and declared unfit for presidency solely because he is from Ukraine. Furthermore, delegates supporting Davydov are receiving signals about potential bans on their participation in the vote.
As of now, 20 out of 34 national federations have signed a collective protest, demanding that the EEF leadership address all identified violations within 48 hours. If ignored, they are prepared to take legal action to have the elections declared invalid. At stake are not only the election results but also the overall legitimacy and reputation of the Federation. Whether the EEF can preserve trust and conduct elections in accordance with its statutory principles will become clear in the coming days.
Let us recall Denys Davydov: «Esports opens paths, and we must help make it happen».
