Class players, European (5)
I believe the answer is:
caste
'class' is the definition.
(caste is a kind of class)
'players european' is the wordplay.
'players' becomes 'cast' (I've seen this before).
'european' becomes 'e' (abbreviation e.g. EU).
'cast'+'e'='CASTE'
(Other definitions for caste that I've seen before include "Division of Hindu society" , "Religious or social class" , "Social class in Hinduism" , "Hereditary class (in India)" , "Social group in India" .)