Judgment of the Court of Justice Fifth Chamber, 6 March 2025, Alajärven Sähkö and Others, C-48/23

• Date: 06 March 2025
• Year: 2025

33

information necessary to enable him or her to assess the financial consequences of the commitment

undertaken by him or her.

In the fourth place, the Court recalls that, in the assessment of whether a contractual term which has

not b een individually negotiated is unfair, it is for the n ational court to assess, having regard to all t he

circumstances of the case, first, the possible failure to observe the requirement of good faith and,

second, the p ossible existence of a significa nt imbalance to the detriment of th e consumer. The Court

states that such an imbalance is not created by a term in a contract which provides for the payment

by a young sportsperson of remuneration equal to 10% of the income received over the 15 years

following the conclusion of that contract in exchange for the provision of services for development

and career sup port for t hat sportsperson, m erely because that term does not esta blish a link between

the value of the service provided and its co st to t he consumer. The existence o f such an imbalance

must b e assessed in the light , in particular, of the rules ap plicable in nation al law in the absence of an

agreement between the parties, fair and equitable market practices on the date of conclusion of the

contract in the matter of remuneration in the field of sport concerned and all the circumstances

attending the conclusion of that contract, as well as all the other terms of that contract or of another

contract on which it is dependent.

In the fifth place, the Court rules that Directive 93/13 precludes a national court which has found a

term in a co ntract concluded between a seller or supplier and a consumer 45 to be unfair from

reducing the amount payable by the consumer to the extent of the costs actually incurred by the

supplier in the performance of that contract. That power would contribute to eliminating the

dissuasive effect on sellers or suppliers of the straightforward non-application with regard to the

consumer of those unfair terms, in so far as those sellers or suppliers would still be tempted to use

thos e terms in the k nowledge that , even if they were declared invalid, the c ontract could nevertheless

be mo dified, to th e extent necessary, by th e nation al court.

In the last place, the Court finds that, where a contractual term stipulates that, in exchange for the

provision of services for development and career s upport for a sport sperson, a consumer undertak es

to pay remuneration equal to 10% of the income received over the 15 years following the conclusion

of that contract, the fact that the consumer was a minor at the time that contract was concluded and

that that contract was concluded by the minor’s parents on his or her behalf is relevant for the

purposes of assessing whether that term is unfair. In that regard, the referring court is required, when

apply ing Directive 93/ 13, to resp ect the fundamental rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental

Rights of the European Union, which include the right to property and the rights of the child. 46 Mor e

specifically, that court must take into account the best interests of the child, but that cannot prevent it

from also taking into consideration the fact that C’s parents themselves had knowledge of the world

of professional sport or the fact that C was 17 years old on the date on which that contract was

concluded.

IX. ENERGY

Judgment of the Court of Justi ce (Fifth Chamber), 6 Mar ch 2025, Al ajä rven Sä hkö and

Other s, C-48/23

Link to the full text of the judgment

Reference for a pr eliminary ruling – Internal market fo r electrici ty – Directiv e (EU) 2019/944 – Article 57(4)

and (5) – Independence of national regulatory authority in the exercise of its duties and powers – Policy

guidelines issued by a Member State – Legisl ative amendmen t aimed at r edu cing ele ctricity di stributio n

45 Pursuant to Article 3(1) of Directiv e 93/13.

46 Articles 17 and 24 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.