Sports law

Overview

We provide advice and litigation legal services for athletes, intermediaries, coaches, investors, sponsors, clubs, associations and federations operating in sport.

Our approach is passionate, competent and always up-to-date. We are pragmatic, dynamic and helpful professionals. We can be combative or mediators, depending on the case. We want to be clear and understandable to our clients: we get straight to the point about everything you need.

In detail:

  • transfers
  • employment law issues
  • endorsement and sponsorship contracts
  • matters of exploitation of athletes’ image rights
  • brokerage and agency/represenation contracts
  • financial fair play and club licensing
  • sports statutes and regulations
  • federative and economic rights
  • disciplinary matters
  • anti-doping issues
  • issues related to results on the playing field
  • issues related to new technologies

How we help you

We assist you in matters requiring decisive legal advice: negotiating and/or drafting contracts in national or international transfers, commercialising athletes’ image rights, drafting sponsorship agreements between athletes and brands, legal advice for sports investments, regulating relations for joint business between several parties or for the organisation of events, advice for market access (e.g. obtaining and renewing licences), writing and/or revising statutes and sports regulations.

We work on the resolution of contractual and disciplinary disputes before ordinary courts and before sports courts and arbitration tribunals: Court of Arbitration for Sport (TAS/CAS), Basketball Arbitral Tribunal (BAT), Dispute Resolution Bodies & Disciplinary Bodies of FIFA, Bodies of football confederations (UEFA, AFC, etc.), Bodies of national & international sports federations (FIBA, FIVB, UCI, FEI, ITF, FIDE, etc.)

Related case studies

Successful defence of a professional cyclist in an Athlete Biological Passport case

Our firm represented a professional cyclist facing a potential Anti-Doping Rule Violation based on his Athlete Biological Passport (ABP), in proceedings conducted under the applicable international federation’s anti-doping rules and the WADA ABP Operating Guidelines. The case arose after a panel of independent scientific experts unanimously concluded, based on the athlete’s hematological profile across numerous blood samples collected over several years, that it was highly likely a prohibited substance or method had been used. On this basis, the athlete was […]

Successful defence of a professional athlete before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in a doping case

Our firm represented a professional athlete who tested positive, following an in-competition doping control, for two prohibited substances, in appeal proceedings before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) brought by the competent national anti-doping organisation. At first instance, the national anti-doping tribunal had excluded the athlete’s responsibility. The anti-doping prosecutor appealed to CAS, seeking a period of ineligibility of up to six years, arguing the athlete had failed to prove the violation was unintentional. Acting for the athlete, we […]
lawyer

Legal advice to a suspended athlete

The firm assisted an athlete that was found to have committed an antidoping rule violation after being tested positive for a specified substance. During the proceeding, the national antidoping prosecutor claimed that the athlete intentionally breached the rules and thus requested the imposition of a period of ineligibility of 4 years according to the applicable regulations. Following the reasonings and defensive arguments advanced by the athlete, the adjudicatory body ruled that the athlete’s conduct was unintentional and therefore limited the […]

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