341The raison d’être of the counterfactual method is that any attempt to identify such a relationship of cause and effect runs up against the fact that it is impossible, in practice, to observe the state of the market at the same time with and without the agreement concerned, as those two states are, by definition, mutually exclusive. It is therefore necessary to compare the observable situation, namely that resulting from that agreement, with the situation which would have arisen had that agreement not been adopted. That method therefore requires an observable situation to be compared with a scenario which, by definition, is hypothetical, in the sense that it has not materialised. When appraising the effects of an agreement between undertakings in the light of Article 101 TFEU, it is necessary to take into consideration the actual context in which that agreement is situated, in particular the economic and legal context in which the undertakings concerned operate, the nature of the goods or services affected, as well as the real conditions of the functioning and the structure of the market or markets in question. It follows that the counterfactual scenario, envisaged on the basis of the absence of that agreement, must be realistic and credible (see, to that effect, judgment of 30 January 2020, Generics (UK) and Others, C‑307/18, EU:C:2020:52, paragraphs 115 to 120).
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