Sports Law
Sports law has long been an important element of our work at Brick Court Chambers. From major disputes concerning the Kerry Packer World Series Cricket, to doping charges against the Aga Khan's horse "Ailsa", we have been involved in some of the major cases of the day. In particular, our expertise in Competition and EU Law means that members of Chambers are often involved in disputes that relate to the regulatory and competition side of Sports Law. The distribution of broadcasting and data rights throw up cases relating to many sports, most recently in the horse racing and football sectors.
Members of Chambers have wide experience in more traditional Sports Law cases concerning player contracts, transfer disputes, restraint of trade, freedom of movement, immigration, drugs, and disciplinary disputes. We act for sports men and women, agents, clubs, regulatory bodies and sponsors. Sports in which we have been active in the recent past include football, tennis, cricket, horse racing, Formula One, Touring Cars, swimming, table tennis, and greyhound racing. Members of Chambers were instructed in doping disputes concerning Katrina Krabbe and also for the Greek Athletics Federation in the investigations against runners Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou. Members of Chambers also sit as panel members of disciplinary bodies, most notably for the Football Association and Horse Racing Board, and also as ad hoc members of CAS panels, as well as writing and lecturing on the subject of Sports Law.
Recent examples of our work in sports law are:
- Digicel v West Indian Cricket Board (Stanford Twenty/20 for Twenty/20 cricket series) (Commercial Court)
- Sheffield United v FA Premier League (Carlos Tevez affair) (Commercial Court)
- BAGS v Turf TV (Chancery Division)
- Attheraces v The Racecourse Association (Commercial Court)
- Adidas v International Tennis Federation (Chancery Division)
