After an unnamed rider and stable filed a complaint regarding the rider invitation policy to Global Champions League and Global Champions Tour competitions, an interim measure has been made to re-establish the Tour’s world ranked rider invitation policy to 60%.
This is in regards to the percentage of invitations that are sent to riders for GCT events on the merit of their Longines FEI World Ranking. All other 5* international competitions follow the invitation rule of 60% to riders by world ranking, 20% for the host federation and 20% at the organizers’ discretion. In March of 2017, a change in policy was announced for the GCT/GCL and supported by the FEI which dictated that 30% of invitations be issued to riders based on their world ranking. The 2017 season proceeded with the new invitation system, seemingly created to accommodate League riders who had paid for their spot, in place.
The interim measure was handed down by the Belgian Competition Authority, which has jurisdiction over the Federation Equestre International, Global Champions Tour, and League.
The BCA put the interim measure in place so that until the matter is ruled upon, “at least 60% of the invitations for GCT events are sent to riders on the basis of their ranking in the official ranking of the FEI, and should not depend on the question whether riders are members of a paying team of the GCL.”
The BCA will proceed with an investigation into a possible infringement on competition law. Read the full press release here.
The Global Champions Tour, which is on hiatus until its 2018 season begins next spring, responded on Friday, December 22,2017: “We received the decision of the Belgian Competition Authority imposing certain interim measures in relation to the GCT invitation rules approved by the FEI. As an organiser of an FEI approved series we work together with the international governing body to make sure the rules it approved are followed and implemented accordingly. We will study the BCA decision carefully and comment at a later stage.”
Read more about the history between the BCA and the Global Champions league as it developed by going here.