BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The advocate general for European Union’s highest court on Thursday urged the court to annul a 2023 European Commission decision to release billions in funding to Hungary that had been suspended over rule-of-law and corruption concerns.
The European Commission in 2022 suspended the money to Budapest over what it said was democratic backsliding by Hungary's right-wing populist government and failures to tackle corruption and ensure judicial independence. A year later, the Commission found that the government had carried out sufficient reforms to have around 10.2 billion euros ($12.1 billion) released.
But in a non-binding opinion on Thursday, Advocate General Tamara Ćapeta urged the European Court of Justice to annul the decision that unfroze the funds, arguing that Hungary had not carried out the required judicial reforms by the time they were released.
While not legally binding, such opinions are often followed by the court.
Hungary, a major net recipient of EU funds, has come under increasing criticism for veering away from democratic norms. The Commission has for more than a decade accused Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of dismantling democratic institutions, taking control of the media and infringing on minority rights. Orbán, who has been in office since 2010, rejects the accusations and has denounced them as interference in Hungary's sovereignty.
When it suspended funds to Hungary, the Commission was worried about, among other things, public procurement — purchases by the state of goods and services or for the execution of projects using EU money. The bloc has feared that such contracts have allowed Orbán’s government to channel EU funding into the businesses of politically connected insiders.
The case contesting the Commission's release of funds was brought in 2024 by the European Parliament, which argued the Commission had committed errors in determining Hungary was eligible to receive the funding.
In her opinion, Ćapeta wrote that the Commission had “incorrectly applied the requirements imposed on Hungary when it permitted, without any explanation, the disbursement of the budget before the required legislative reforms had entered into force or were being applied.”
Billions in additional EU funding remain frozen to Hungary, a shortfall in its budget that has contributed to years of economic stagnation. Orbán, an advocate of greater authority for national governments among the EU's 27 member states, has accused the bloc of interfering in his country's internal affairs and using the distribution of funds as a means of coercion.
The autocratic leader faces what will likely be the biggest challenge of his 16 years in power during elections in April, where a center-right challenger, Péter Magyar and his Tisza party, hold a substantial lead in most polls.
Magyar has promised to restore Hungary's democratic institutions and pursue a more constructive relationship with the EU, and to quickly bring home the frozen funds.
Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrives for the EU summit at Alden Biesen Castle in Bilzen-Hoeselt, Belgium, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. (Nicolas Tucat, Pool Photo via AP)
PHOENIX (AP) — When Jennifer Rizzotti arrived at UConn as a player in 1992, the expectations around the school, as well as the women's basketball landscape, were much different than they are today.
Geno Auriemma was only in his eighth season coaching the Huskies. UConn hadn't yet hoisted a national championship trophy. There wasn't nearly the same pressure to win that the Huskies face now. And women's basketball as a whole hadn't seen the unprecedented growth in sponsorships and popularity it is experiencing now.
By the 1994-95 season, Rizzotti and fellow UConn standout Rebecca Lobo helped the Huskies go undefeated en route to their first national title. Everything about the program changed, and even as women's basketball has evolved and skyrocketed in exposure, the Huskies have remained the gold standard.
“There was no thought that we were going to be undefeated,” Rizzotti said. “We didn't have that internal pressure. We didn't have external pressure. That's the last time a UConn team could play that way. Think about that: 1995 is the last time a UConn team could play without that kind of pressure.”
The Huskies have since won 12 national titles, reached the Final Four 25 times and won 30 conference titles. They've been ranked 653 weeks in The Associated Press women's basketball poll, and Auriemma is the winningest coach in women's college basketball history.
As conversations around the Final Four in Phoenix center around how the women's game has grown, the Huskies, who are competing for the second straight national title, have been at the forefront.
“You could tell that everything was aligned for this program to reach that pinnacle," said Rizzotti, who is currently the president of the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun. “I don't think anything of us would have predicted that it would have gone on as it had.”
Rizzotti joined former UConn players Stefanie Dolson, currently with the WNBA's Washington Mystics, and Shea Ralph, now Vanderbilt's coach, on a panel Friday at “The AP Top 25 Fan Poll Experience,” which is being held at Arizona State’s First Amendment Forum in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Earlier Friday, Big East commissioner Val Ackerman, former Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) commissioner Rich Ensor and AP women’s poll founder Mel Greenberg spoke on a panel moderated by college basketball analyst Debbie Antonelli on the growth of women's basketball at the college and pro levels.
“I think women's basketball has never been more popular,” said Ackerman, who was the first president of the WNBA from 1996-2005. “I think schools that are succeeding are really seeing, feeling and believing in the (return on investment). And UConn's a case in point.”
Ackerman sees the investment that the schools in this year's Final Four — UConn, Texas, South Carolina, and UCLA — have made in their programs to reach back-to-back national semifinals as a reflection of the growing importance of pouring resources into women's hoops.
“And that's done a world of good,” she added. “Programs like South Carolina, UCLA, you see what they're doing for their campuses. The investment is paying off in terms of the brand and engagement with the community and school reputation.”
Even as women's sports are drawing record crowds and WNBA players are set to make more money than ever, Ensor sees much more room to capitalize on this current growth.
“It has been about breaking down barriers, and they still exist,” Ensor said. “We marvel at what's happened, but we still recognize there's a lot more that's to come.”
AP Top 25 Fan Poll Experience: https://apnews.com/https:/apnews.com/projects/arizona-state-fan-poll-experience/
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
FILE - Connecticut's Breanna Stewart, left, drives to the basket as Cincinnati's Maya Benham, right, defends during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill, File)
From left, Debbie Antonelli, Val Ackerman, Rich Ensor and Mel Greenberg sit on a panel during an event Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Val Ackerman, commissioner of the Big East Conference, listens during an event Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/John Locher)
UConn head coach Geno Auriemma reacts after his team defeated Notre Dame in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Fort Worth, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
