Bavaria Sports Law: Why Now? – Junge Welt

On January 1st of this year, Bavaria became the first federal state to have its own sports law come into force. Why was this law necessary now, and what has it changed in sports in the Free State?

We currently have the unfittest juniors and the fittest seniors ever. Against this background, such a law is a more than contemporary instrument to make the importance of sport visible as a whole and, at the same time, to define the framework conditions for a sports strategy. The intellectual starting point for this was the question of why people in northern European countries and Switzerland, for example, are more physically active and healthier than here. As a result, this sports law was passed in the Bavarian state parliament in mid-December. And without any dissenting voice, which in and of itself is a strong statement in favor of sport.

What is the core of it all?

In Germany, popular, hobby and youth competitive sports and their requirements are the responsibility of the individual countries according to the confederal structures. As far as I know, there are currently only selective sports funding laws there. The Bavarian sports law goes further, for example by making financial support for sports mandatory for the Free State as an elementary basis for the first time. The Bavarian law provides the basis for a long-term sports strategy, which will be defined more precisely by the Bavarian state government in cooperation with the sports organizations later this year and supported by concrete guidelines and guidelines. Naturally, this will involve many very practical questions: What should sport look like in daycare centers and schools? Which and how many sports facilities are needed for our around 11,500 sports and around 4,500 shooting clubs and the total of more than 5.5 million members who are organized here? How can the natural sports opportunities be optimally used? Which bureaucratic requirements are particularly hindering for club sports? How will the state’s subsidies for our special Bavarian club allowance be calculated in the future? All of these facets are reflected and covered by the sports law.

However, the law is likely to be overwhelmed by the idea of bundling different responsibilities in one hand in the future.

That’s right, school sport will continue to be located at the Ministry of Culture, daycare sport at the Ministry of Social Affairs and club and association sport at the Ministry of the Interior. This law will not change this overarching organization. But it reflects sport and its values for society as a whole and thus brings the responsibility of these individual departments and their interaction for lifelong sport into focus for the first time. Ensuring more physical activity and thus better health, well-being and enjoyment of life – all efforts lead to this common goal. A common goal that, in my opinion, would also serve well as a strategic approach for federal policy with regard to the Sports Promotion Act.

What about elite sport? Is the promise anchored in the new state law to pay Bavarian athletes or athletes from Bavarian clubs higher bonuses for Olympic medals than those paid out by the German Sports Aid Foundation? Most recently at the Summer Games, Olympic gold was worth 20,000 euros.

No, there is nothing in the Bavarian sports law about such payments. There were extra bonuses in Bavaria for Olympic medalists for the first time last year. They were based on an initiative by the State Chancellery and Prime Minister Markus Söder.