How SIGA is helping European Aquatics raise the bar for good governance in sport

Good governance in sport can sometimes sound like an abstract concept. Recent events at FIFA have provided a powerful reminder of why it matters.

FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, are facing one of the most serious governance crises of his decade in charge of world soccer. The immediate trigger was a controversial proposal to create a new commercial entity and sell a stake in FIFA’s World Cup-related rights to private investors. The plan was abandoned following intense opposition, but the way it was developed and presented prompted wider questions about transparency, accountability and the concentration of decision-making power within the organization.

UEFA and CONCACAF publicly said they had lost confidence in Infantino, while the Asian Football Confederation joined them in demanding greater accountability and independent scrutiny. Opposition has since spread further, with senior figures discussing possible changes to the way FIFA itself is governed ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Why good governance matters in sport

The controversy illustrates why governance matters far beyond the boardroom. Sports governing bodies control enormous revenues, choose where major competitions are staged, set and enforce rules, distribute funding and make decisions that directly affect clubs, national federations and athletes. Transparency, appropriate checks and balances and genuinely independent scrutiny help ensure that those decisions are made in the interests of the sport rather than individuals or particular interest groups.

It is an issue at the heart of the work of the Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA), the independent, international organization dedicated to strengthening integrity in sport. AS is proud to be a SIGA media partner and to support its work promoting higher standards of governance, transparency and accountability across the global sports industry.

One of SIGA’s principal tools for turning those principles into something measurable is the SIGA Independent Rating & Verification System (SIRVS). Rather than asking a sports organization simply to declare that it follows good governance practices, SIRVS independently assesses its implementation of and compliance with SIGA’s Universal Standards. Those standards cover Good Governance, Financial Integrity and Transparency, Sports Betting Integrity, and Youth Development and Protection.

The distinction is important. Independent assessment can identify weaknesses that an organization may not recognize internally, provide a roadmap for reform and subsequently verify whether improvements have actually been made. For sports institutions, that can strengthen their structures and credibility; for athletes and other stakeholders whose careers and interests are affected by those institutions, it provides greater assurance that decisions are being made within transparent and accountable systems.

European Aquatics approach to good governance

European Aquatics provides one example of that process in practice. Formerly known as LEN, or the Ligue Européenne de Natation, European Aquatics is the continental governing body for swimming, diving, high diving, artistic swimming, open water swimming, water polo and masters aquatics. Affiliated to World Aquatics, it represents 52 national federations across Europe and adopted its current name in 2023.

Its governance reform process began with a SIGA gap analysis in 2022, comparing its existing practices with SIGA’s Universal Standards and identifying areas requiring improvement. It subsequently implemented reforms before undergoing independent SIRVS assessment, achieving Bronze certification for Good Governance in Sport and retaining that level in its latest annual review.

Against the backdrop of the current debate over how some of the world’s most powerful sports organizations are governed, SIGA spoke to European Aquatics president and SIGA Council member António José Silva about that process, what independent scrutiny revealed about his organization and why he believes other sports governing bodies should be prepared to subject themselves to the same kind of external examination.

The following interview was conducted by SIGA and is republished by AS, a SIGA media partner, with permission.

When you were elected President of European Aquatics, why did you make good governance an early priority?

From the outset, I believed that European Aquatics had to match its sporting ambition with an equally strong commitment to governance, transparency, and accountability. These are not peripheral matters. They are fundamental to the credibility, resilience, and long-term success of any international sports organization.

Good governance was therefore not treated as a one-off project. It became a strategic priority for the organization.

SIGA helped us turn good governance from a priority into measurable progress. When a new President takes office, as I did, there is often no efficient and independent way to diagnose the governance framework they have inherited. How can you build a legacy without first understanding the current state of the organization and how it compares with best-in-class standards specifically tailored to the sports industry?

We began with an independent and confidential gap analysis against SIGA’s Bronze-level standard. This revealed areas of both major and minor non-conformity in relation to SIGA’s Universal Standards on Good Governance in Sport.

The result was, to be frank, more challenging than I had anticipated. However, this gave us something very valuable: an objective starting point. We were then able to use the findings of the gap analysis, together with the Corrective Action Plan proposed by the audit team, as a central element of our strategic governance reforms and to mark the beginning of a new phase of enhanced governance for our European federation.

We repeated the gap-analysis process several times over a two-year journey and followed a structured roadmap for improvement. This included holding several General Assemblies to approve important constitutional changes before submitting our progress to independent assessment through the SIRVS certification system.

I am proud to say that last month, European Aquatics completed its second annual SIRVS review and once again achieved Bronze-level certification.

This continuing process has helped us strengthen European Aquatics for the benefit of athletes, Member Federations, partners, and the wider aquatics community. We are now working towards the silver level as part of our commitment to continuous improvement.

Why did European Aquatics begin with a SIGA gap analysis before progressing to the full SIRVS assessment?

The gap analysis was an essential first step. It gave us a detailed and objective understanding of our governance arrangements against SIGA’s Universal Standards on Good Governance in Sport.

It enabled us to recognize the areas in which we were already performing well, while also identifying where further work was needed. Crucially, it provided us with a structured roadmap: clear priorities, practical recommendations, and a reliable basis on which to make improvements, including improving the efficiency of our federation.

Having undertaken that work, progressing to SIRVS was the natural next step. We wanted the progress we had made to be independently assessed and verified.

That is how an organization moves from aspiration to demonstrable achievement.

As mentioned, last month European Aquatics completed its second annual SIRVS review for Good Governance in Sport and again achieved bronze certification. What does that result mean to you?

It demonstrates that sustained reform produces results.

Retaining Bronze certification in our second annual SIRVS review is important external recognition of the progress European Aquatics has made since we began this journey. It confirms that the work undertaken was meaningful, structured and capable of being independently evidenced.

The SIRVS assessment provides a snapshot of how an organization operates at a particular point in time. The certification is valid for a three-year cycle, with annual reviews in years two and three. During that period, an organization’s rating can change, so we are very pleased to have maintained our bronze level.

However, certification is not a finishing line. Good governance requires constant attention and continuous improvement. The greatest value of the process has been that it has strengthened our organization, embedded better practices and provided a clear foundation on which we can continue to build, with the ambition of continuously improving and strengthening our structure and processes.

What did SIGA’s Universal Standards and SIRVS contribute to that progress?

SIGA’s Universal Standards and SIRVS gave us both the framework and the discipline to translate a leadership priority into an accountable and manageable process of reform.

The Universal Standards set out clear and internationally relevant principles, while the gap analysis and SIRVS provided the methodology to assess our position, address identified gaps and demonstrate progress.

That combination is particularly valuable. It is not simply about declaring support for good governance. It is about being able to demonstrate, through independent verification, what has been achieved and where further work remains necessary.

There is currently an important debate around governance, transparency and independent scrutiny in international football. What does European Aquatics’ experience suggest to the wider sporting world?

European Aquatics’ experience shows that there is a constructive and credible route for sports organisations wishing to strengthen confidence in their governance.

This is about recognising that transparency, accountability and independent scrutiny strengthen sport. They protect institutions, support leaders acting in good faith and give athletes, fans, partners and the public greater confidence.

Other industries accept independent scrutiny. Sport should be no different.

As the custodian of aquatics in Europe, European Aquatics has a responsibility to demonstrate that the organisation operates in accordance with sound governance principles, including democracy, transparency and stakeholder representation.

European Aquatics is a long-standing Member of SIGA, and you are a member of SIGA’s Council. Could that be seen as influencing your positive assessment of the SIGA Universal Standards and SIRVS?

The sequence is important. European Aquatics was already a Member of SIGA before I became President, but in many respects, it was a dormant membership. When I assumed the leadership of the organisation, I properly assessed what being part of SIGA could offer European Aquatics from a sport integrity perspective.

I did not become convinced of the value of the SIGA Universal Standards and SIRVS because I joined SIGA’s Council. I joined the Council because European Aquatics’ own experience had already demonstrated their practical value to me.

We began with the gap analysis, worked through the resulting recommendations and then progressed to independent assessment under SIRVS. That experience demonstrated that the framework is rigorous, constructive and genuinely useful for sports organisations seeking to improve.

It convinced me that SIGA is responding to a real need in world sport: credible, independent and practical mechanisms that help organisations strengthen their governance in a constructive and supportive environment.

Would you encourage European Aquatics’ national federations to follow the same path?

Yes. I encourage our Member Federations to consider adopting the SIGA Universal Standards and undertaking the SIRVS process.

They should see it not as a compliance burden, but as an opportunity: an opportunity to understand their current position, strengthen their systems, build stakeholder confidence and demonstrate leadership through independently verified progress.

European Aquatics’ experience has been very positive. We have seen how a gap analysis can become a roadmap for reform, and how that roadmap can lead to measurable and independently recognised results.

I believe our national federations can benefit significantly from following the same path.

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