Insights

On 29 April 2026, the European Commission adopted the Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF), a temporary framework relaxing the conditions under which EU Member States can support companies in sectors particularly affected by fuel, fertilizer, and electricity price surges driven by the Middle East crisis.

On March 4, 2026, the European Commission proposed the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), a draft regulation that aims to reverse the decline of the EU’s manufacturing sector while supporting the adoption of cleaner technologies. This client alert is the third in a three-part series dedicated to the IAA. In our first alert, we provided an overview of the draft regulation. In a second alert, we took a closer look at the new foreign direct investment (FDI) review framework that the IAA would establish for certain strategic sectors. In this third and final instalment of the series, we focus on the implications of the proposal for the automotive industry.

On March 4, 2026, the European Commission proposed the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), a draft regulation that aims to reverse the decline of the EU’s manufacturing sector while supporting the adoption of cleaner technologies. This client alert is the second in a three-part series dedicated to the IAA. In our first alert we provided an overview of the draft regulation. In this second alert, we take a closer look at the new foreign direct investment (FDI) review framework that the IAA would establish for certain strategic sectors.

The BCA 2026 Priorities Paper sets out the sectors in which the authority will exercise particular vigilance, and outlines its strategic policy priorities for the year, including the development and deployment of its enforcement instruments. For in-house counsel, the document is an important roadmap: it signals where investigations are most likely to originate, what new tools the BCA is acquiring, and which compliance initiatives deserve immediate attention. The most prominent change in the 2026 paper is the replacement of the construction sector, considered a priority sector in 2025, with sport, media and entertainment.

On March 4, 2026, the European Commission proposed the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), a draft regulation that aims to reverse the decline of the EU’s manufacturing sector while supporting the adoption of cleaner technologies. The proposal introduces “Made in EU” and low-carbon requirements in public procurement and public support schemes, to create lead markets for European industrial products. The proposal also seeks to increase value creation in the EU and bolster the EU’s economic security by setting conditions for major foreign direct investments (FDI) in strategic sectors.

On 9 January 2026, the European Commission published its Guidelines on the application of Regulation (EU) 2022/2560, also known as the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR).

As part of a comprehensive plan to ensure that EU Member States achieve “defense readiness” by 2030, the European Commission has proposed a package of measures to facilitate public and private investments in defense by simplifying legal frameworks relevant to defense. In a previous alert, we provided an overview of the Defense Readiness Omnibus and examined its implications for defense procurement. In this alert, we focus on its implications for the enforcement of competition law.

On October 16, 2025, the European Commission and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy presented their Defense Readiness Roadmap 2030 to the EU Member States. This comprehensive plan aims to strengthen European defense capabilities. It follows, and should be read together with, the Commission’s Defense Readiness Omnibus that was published in June 2025. The Omnibus contains a set of proposals to facilitate defense investments and boost EU Member States’ responsiveness to today’s security challenges.

About one year ago, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) ruled in its landmark Illumina/Grail judgment that the European Commission could not accept merger referrals from national competition authorities under Article 22 of the EU Merger Regulation (EUMR) unless those authorities had jurisdiction to review the transaction themselves (see our previous alert).

On June 25, 2025, the European Commission adopted a new framework that simplifies EU State aid rules to make it easier for Member States to support the development of clean energy, industrial decarbonization and clean technology. This Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework (CISAF) will be in place until December 31, 2030 and replaces the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework (TCTF), which was introduced in March 2023 to address the economic impact of the war in Ukraine and reduce the EU’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.

On July 9, 2025, the Directorate-General for Competition within the European Commission issued two informal guidance letters, both intended to bring increased clarity on competition law compliance to companies in the transport sector.

Under its new leadership, the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) has stepped up its enforcement activities and launched a number of initiatives and investigations that put it at the forefront of competition law developments in the European Union.

On February 26, the European Commission presented its Clean Industrial Deal (CID). As a follow-up to the European Green Deal, the CID aims to strengthen the competitiveness of European industry while at the same time accelerating the decarbonization of the economy.

On March 5, 2025, the European Commission presented a comprehensive Action Plan to boost the global competitiveness of the European Union’s automotive industry and support its transition to zero-emission, connected, and automated vehicles.

On October 4, 2024, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled in the Diarra case that the transfer rules of the Fédération Internationale Football Association (FIFA) regarding the termination of player contracts without just cause were incompatible with EU internal market and competition laws. Following this landmark ruling, FIFA published temporary changes to its transfer rules on December 23, 2024. This judgment could have a significant impact on the economic model for football in Europe, and on the balance of power both between clubs, and between clubs and their players.

Just over a year ago, the notification obligations under the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) became applicable. Since then, M&A transactions and bids for government contracts above certain thresholds must be notified to the European Commission. Pending the Commission’s review, the transaction cannot be completed, or the contract cannot be awarded. What lessons can be learned from the application of the FSR to date? Has the FSR proved to be an effective tool in leveling the playing field, or has its main effect been to burden companies with red tape, at the risk of discouraging investment in Europe?

On September 3, 2024, the EU Court of Justice overturned the first-instance judgment of the EU General Court, which had held that the European Commission could review transactions that fall below EU and Member States' merger control thresholds through referrals by national competition authorities under Article 22 of the EU Merger Regulation (Case C-611/22 P, Illumina v Commission).

On July 2, 2024, the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) found that three security companies, Seris, G4S and Securitas, had participated in serious cartel practices within the private security services sector from 2008 to 2020. The practices consisted of price-fixing, bid rigging, and no poach agreements. This decision is important for two reasons: because the fines imposed by the BCA amount to a substantial EUR 47 million and because this is the first time that the BCA has fined companies for a no poach arrangement.

On August 1, 2024, the European Commission published its draft Guidelines on abusive exclusionary conduct by dominant undertakings. Their adoption would mark the first major update in over 15 years of the Commission’s guidance on the application of the prohibition of abuse of dominance laid down in Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU). The Commission’s 2008 Guidance on enforcement priorities in applying Article 82 of the EC Treaty to abusive exclusionary conduct by dominant undertakings, which received only a limited update in 2023, were once hailed as a welcome move away from a legalistic, form-based approach to an effects-based approached informed by economics. Is the pendulum now swinging back to a more formalistic approach based on presumptions, shifting the burden of proof onto dominant undertakings and heralding an era of stricter enforcement?

On Tuesday, June 11, 2024, Crowell & Moring (Crowell) and King's College London co-hosted their 6thannual Competition Law Conference at TheMerode in Brussels. The event featured a keynote address by David Lawrence, Policy Director at the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), and four panels of experts discussing the latest developments in competition law in the EU, UK and US. Key topics included the impact of AI and digital innovation, no-poach and non-compete provisions in the employment context, state aid and the Foreign Subsidies Regulation, and developments in merger enforcement. Distinguished speakers from the EU, UK and US, representing diverse perspectives from regulatory authorities, academia, and industry, shared their insights on these pressing issues.