The New Nation - Internet Edition

AFP, Paris

FIFA president Sepp Blater has called on the European Union (EU) to recognise the autonomy of sport when it comes to maters regarding labour laws.

Blater wants football to be exempt from freedom of movement laws, which would allow sports authorities to limit the number of foreign players allowed to play at clubs.

"Workers in Europe can circulate freely but footballers are not workers," he said. "You cannot consider a footballer like any normal worker because you need 11 to play a match - and they are more artists than workers." Blater said he supports the International Olympic Commitee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge, who wrote a leter to state heads of all the EU countries on the subject of sporting exemptions.

The EU recently stated it wanted to impose more regulations on football, something that has angered Blater.

"Football has never had the courage to go against this practice," he said. "When you have 11 foreigners in a team, this is not good for the development of football, for the education of young players, and there is a financial aspect, too."