Editing European Paintball Federation

'''European Paintball Federation''' ('''EPBF''') is a continental paintball federation established to represent national paintball associations and promote the development of competitive paintball across Europe.

The federation is affiliated with the international [[United Paintball Federation]] (UPBF) structure and has historically been involved in European national-team championships, international competition regulations, referee development and the coordination of national governing bodies.[1][2]

EPBF was active by 2012, with surviving executive committee records from February 2013 and an annual report covering the 2013 season. Its early leadership included French paintball organiser '''Laurent Hamet''' as president and '''Patrice Guigou''' as general secretary.[2][3]

The federation's statutes establish it as an association registered in France under the French law of 1901.[1]

{| class="wikitable"
|+ European Paintball Federation
|-
! Full name
| European Paintball Federation
|-
! Abbreviation
| EPBF
|-
! Type
| Continental sports federation
|-
! Sport
| [[Paintball]]
|-
! Jurisdiction
| Europe
|-
! Headquarters
| France
|-
! Legal form
| French association under the law of 1901
|-
! Established
| By 2012; precise founding date not independently confirmed
|-
! Historical president
| Laurent Hamet
|-
! Historical general secretary
| Patrice Guigou
|-
! International affiliation
| [[United Paintball Federation]]
|-
! Membership
| National paintball federations and associations
|-
! Official languages
| English and French
|-
! Website
| [https://www.epbf.info/ epbf.info]
|}

== History ==

=== Formation and early development ===

The European Paintball Federation emerged as an organisation intended to provide continental governance for paintball and establish cooperation between national paintball federations.

Its formation occurred during a period when the [[Millennium Series]] was Europe's principal international tournament circuit and national-team paintball competitions were developing alongside established professional and divisional tournaments.

EPBF was operating by 2012, and its surviving February 2013 executive committee records refer to European Championships held during the preceding year.[3]

The federation's 2013 annual report described its role as bringing together national paintball federations throughout Europe, developing the sport, maintaining competition regulations and representing paintball within the wider international sporting community.[2]

Its early objectives included cooperation between national associations, standardisation of rules, development of refereeing and administration, and international sporting recognition.

=== Early leadership ===

The federation's 2013 annual report identified '''Laurent Hamet''' of France as president and '''Patrice Guigou''' of France as general secretary.[2]

The report documented an executive committee including representatives from France, Austria, Germany, Poland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

{| class="wikitable"
! Position
! Name
! Country
|-
| President
| Laurent Hamet
| France
|-
| General secretary
| Patrice Guigou
| France
|-
| Treasurer
| Wolfgang Kornholz
| Austria
|-
| Senior vice-president
| Ulrich Staehr
| Germany
|-
| Vice-president
| Tomasz Matuszewski
| Poland
|-
| Vice-president
| Viktor Tohayev
| Ukraine
|-
| Vice-president
| Manfred Ulrich
| Germany
|-
| Vice-president
| Stephen Baldwin
| United Kingdom
|-
| Vice-president
| Barry Fuggle
| United Kingdom
|}

These positions reflect the federation's documented 2013 leadership and should not be interpreted as a current executive committee list.

=== Development of continental governance ===

By 2013, EPBF had established a structure incorporating an executive committee, national federation representation and specialised committees.

The federation's published statutes set out provisions covering membership, congresses, elections, disciplinary procedures, financial administration, competitions and relations with the international governing body.[1]

The statutes identify the federation as a French-registered association and establish English and French as its official languages.

The organisation was intended to act as a representative body for national paintball associations rather than as a commercial tournament team or individual event promoter.

== Governance ==

=== Congress ===

The federation's statutes establish Congress as its principal representative decision-making body.[1]

Congress provides a mechanism through which member national associations can participate in federation governance, including elections, membership decisions and matters affecting European paintball.

The statutes distinguish between ordinary and extraordinary congresses and establish procedures for voting and representation.

=== Executive committee ===

The executive committee is responsible for the federation's administration and the implementation of decisions made through its governance structure.

The statutes define the responsibilities of the president, general secretary, treasurer and other federation bodies.[1]

EPBF also established committees concerned with competitions, technical development, refereeing, disciplinary matters and ethics.

=== Membership ===

Under the federation's statutes, membership is principally open to national paintball associations responsible for the organisation of paintball within European countries.[1]

The statutes generally provide for one national member federation per country, subject to provisions concerning exceptional circumstances.

Applications for membership are considered under the federation's admission procedures.

The executive committee may grant provisional admission, with full membership decisions reserved for Congress.

The federation's structure was intended to provide national organisations with a representative voice in continental paintball administration.

== European championships ==

=== National-team competitions ===

One of EPBF's principal historical responsibilities was the administration and regulation of European national-team paintball championships.

The federation's January 2014 rules included regulations for European Championships in men's, women's and under-19 categories.[4]

These competitions brought together national representative teams rather than commercial tournament teams.

The regulations addressed eligibility, team obligations, competition administration, safety, media requirements and organisational responsibilities.

The federation also developed competition arrangements for veterans and other categories.

=== Relationship with the Millennium Series ===

During the early 2010s, EPBF coordinated European national-team championships alongside events on the [[Millennium Series]] calendar.

Minutes of an executive committee meeting held in Paris on 7 February 2013 confirmed plans to link that year's European Championships with Millennium Series events.[3]

The published schedule included:

{| class="wikitable"
! Championship
! Dates
! Location
|-
| European Under-19 Championship
| 12–14 April 2013
| Saint-Tropez, France
|-
| European Women's Championship
| 24–26 May 2013
| Bitburg, Germany
|-
| European Men's Championship
| 5–7 July 2013
| Basildon, United Kingdom
|}

These dates and locations were adopted in the federation's February 2013 planning records.

The arrangement enabled national-team championships to take place alongside established European tournament events.

EPBF's role in these competitions should be distinguished from the commercial operation of the Millennium Series itself.

=== Competition regulations ===

EPBF maintained regulations governing national-team participation and competition administration.

Its January 2014 rules addressed matters including:

* National-team participation and eligibility
* Team registration and responsibilities
* Competition organisation and scheduling
* Referee and official requirements
* Insurance and player welfare
* Media and commercial rights
* Disciplinary procedures

The regulations required participating teams to comply with federation rules and the obligations associated with international competition.[4]

== International paintball governance ==

=== United Paintball Federation ===

EPBF forms part of the continental federation structure associated with the [[United Paintball Federation]] (UPBF).

The EPBF statutes identify the federation as a continental confederation recognised by UPBF and provide for cooperation with other continental paintball organisations.[1]

The international structure is intended to coordinate national federations, international regulations and national-team competition.

The UPBF's published governance overview identifies EPBF as the European continental federation.[5]

=== World championship development ===

EPBF participated in the development of international national-team paintball competition.

Its February 2013 executive committee records included planning for a Paintball World Cup and discussed participation allocations for teams from different continents.[3]

The meeting proposed holding a world competition in conjunction with the final Millennium Series event and considered qualification arrangements for European teams.

The federation's 2015 congress records also document discussions concerning a proposed World Cup in Malaysia and subsequent plans for international championships.[6]

These records demonstrate EPBF's involvement in international championship planning, although individual proposals should not be treated as completed events unless independently verified.

== National federation development ==

EPBF's stated objectives included supporting national paintball federations in developing the sport, establishing consistent competition regulations and seeking greater recognition within national and international sporting structures.[2]

The federation sought to coordinate national governing bodies and provide a framework for cooperation on matters affecting European paintball.

Its 2013 annual report identified support for national federations, referee development, competition administration and international sporting recognition among its objectives.

The federation also maintained procedures for the admission of national associations and the representation of their interests within continental governance.[1]

== Refereeing and technical development ==

EPBF established committees concerned with rules, refereeing, disciplinary matters and ethics.

Its 2013 annual report identified a Rules, Referees, Disciplinary and Ethics Committee, chaired by '''Domingos Leitalo''' of Portugal.[2]

Other documented committee members included Ulrich Staehr, Viktoriya Sarantseva, Tomasz Matuszewski and Frederik Rigal.

The federation's stated responsibilities included the selection, training and supervision of referees and technical personnel involved in international competitions.

These activities formed part of its broader objective of establishing consistent standards across European paintball.

== Later development ==

EPBF continued to be identified within the international paintball governance structure following the early national-team championship programmes.

The UPBF's published governance information identifies the European Paintball Federation as its European continental confederation.[5]

The available sources establish the federation's historical leadership, statutes and administrative activities, but do not provide a fully verified succession of executive committees through 2026.

Historical officeholders should therefore not be presented as current officials without confirmation from more recent federation records.

== Historical significance ==

The European Paintball Federation represents an important stage in the development of organised international paintball governance.

Where commercial tournament series traditionally focused on competition between privately organised teams, EPBF sought to establish a representative structure based on national paintball federations.

Its documented activities included:

* Development of continental governance structures
* Representation of national paintball associations
* Administration and regulation of European national-team championships
* Cooperation with the Millennium Series on championship scheduling
* Development of referee and technical standards
* Participation in international paintball governance and world championship planning

The federation's surviving annual reports, statutes, rules and congress records provide substantial primary documentation of efforts to establish formal European paintball administration during the 2010s.

== Timeline ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Event
|-
| 2012
| EPBF operating European national-team championship activities, as referenced in subsequent executive committee records
|-
| 7 February 2013
| Executive committee meeting in Paris discusses European Championships, international competition and the federation's ranking system
|-
| 2013
| EPBF annual report documents the federation's objectives, leadership and committee structure
|-
| January 2014
| Published EPBF rules establish regulations for European national-team championships
|-
| 30 March 2015
| EPBF congress held in Saint-Raphaël, France, discussing financial administration, championships and international competition planning
|-
| 2020s
| EPBF continues to be identified within the UPBF continental federation structure
|}

== See also ==

* [[United Paintball Federation]]
* [[Millennium Series]]
* [[NXL Europe]]
* [[European Paintball Championship]]
* [[Paintball World Cup]]
* [[Paintball in Europe]]
* [[Laurent Hamet]]
* [[Paintball federation]]

== References ==

# [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/STATUTES%20EPBF%20EN_edited.pdf "European Paintball Federation Statutes"], European Paintball Federation. Official statutes describing the federation's legal form, objectives, governance, membership, competition responsibilities and relationship with UPBF.
# [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/Annual%20report%202013.pdf "EPBF 2013 Annual Report"], European Paintball Federation, 2013. Official annual report documenting the federation's objectives, executive committee, specialised committees and continental governance activities.
# [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/meeting%2007-02-2013%20in%20Paris-CHD.pdf "EPBF Board Meeting Minutes — 7 February 2013"], European Paintball Federation. Official executive committee record documenting the 2013 European Championship schedule, ranking system and international competition planning.
# [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/EPBF_rules_book_v1-03.pdf "EPBF Rules Book"], European Paintball Federation, January 2014. Official competition regulations covering European Championships and national-team participation.
# [https://www.upbf.net/paintball-sport "Paintball Is a Sport"], United Paintball Federation. Official overview of international paintball history and the continental federation structure, identifying EPBF as the European confederation.
# [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/1st%20EPBF%20Congress%2011-01-2014%20in%20Vienna.pdf "European Paintball Federation Congress Proceedings"], European Paintball Federation. Official document containing proceedings of the 30 March 2015 congress in Saint-Raphaël, France, including financial and championship planning discussions.

== External links ==

* [https://www.epbf.info/ European Paintball Federation — Official Website]
* [https://www.upbf.net/ United Paintball Federation — Official Website]
* [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/Annual%20report%202013.pdf EPBF 2013 Annual Report]
* [https://www.epbf.info/ra_data/files/STATUTES%20EPBF%20EN_edited.pdf EPBF Statutes]

[[Category:Paintball organizations]]
[[Category:Paintball federations]]
[[Category:International paintball organizations]]
[[Category:Paintball in Europe]]
[[Category:European sports federations]]