Our knowledge of the sports industry enables us to help clubs and organisations increase their revenue from sponsorship, domestic & international broadcasting rights and other associated avenues. We offer help and guidance on:

• Sponsorship – we have a specialist team to offer strategic sponsorship advice, valuation and selection. We have relationships with market leading and challenger brands who use sport to connect with their audiences, meaning we are well placed to assist you.
• Recent work includes advising one of the North West’s leading football clubs on a number of agreements to exploit its brand worldwide and advising a governing body in relation to a number of commercial agreements to bring additional revenues from its venues.
• Our expertise extends internationally with the team recently acting as trusted counsel to a national league in a foreign territory advising on their title and premium sponsorship as well as advising on their tender for broadcast and media rights with a value in excess of £1 billion.

Our dedicated team of media lawyers can advise and assist on all matters relating to sports TV/broadcasting rights and arrangements, licensing agreements and promotional distribution agreements. We deal with a wide range of media contacts and can offer guidance on the very latest technology to produce the correct media and digital solutions to suit your strategy.

We advise clients on how to maximise the potential of their stadium by working closely with them on funding and strategic planning in the following areas:

• New stadium funding, guidance and direction
• Site sourcing
• External investment
• Sale and leaseback arrangements

We also advise on issues relating to event organisation and venue management, including:

• Event hosting
• Rights protection
• Ticketing
• Venue management
• Hospitality

We advise and provide guidance in relation to:

• Corporate restructuring
• Launching new businesses
• Acquisitions and joint ventures
• Shareholder transactions and disputes
• Property acquisitions and sales
• Employment contracts and consultancy agreements
• Employment disputes and the negotiation of settlement agreements

It is vital that intellectual property rights are fully protected. Our specialist intellectual property division represents international brands and has considerable experience of advising on:

• Distribution / agency agreements
• Intellectual property licensing
• Anti-counterfeiting measures
• Registration of IP rights
• Trademark audits

We advise clubs, governing bodies, associations and stakeholders on a range of regulatory and governance issues including but not limited to: membership rights, rules and regulations and Financial Fair Play (FFP).

• The team has particular knowledge and expertise in advising national professional leagues and/or associations on their structure, governance and broadcast rights.

We recognise the harsh realities and employ proactive dispute resolution techniques to move our clients away from conflicts and towards sensible commercial results. We can provide help with:

Contract disputes involving construction and property

Representing clients before professional bodies

Corporate litigation, including corporate recovery

Banking and finance-related disputes

Disputes with agents / players

We understand the need for relocation to the UK for foreign nationals in a sporting context and provide expert immigration services to both clubs and individual athletes (including their family) in relation to:

• Tier 2 Sponsorships for Football Clubs to recruit foreign players
• Assisting companies and potential employees to apply via the points-based system
• Ensuring clubs’ legal responsibilities are met
• Providing a document checking service to ensure all employees have the necessary visas and immigration status to work in the UK
• Offering a checking service to alert clubs and organisations to changes in the immigration status of staff
• Representation before the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal