Practice areas

Our sports practice provides a first class offering for a range of different sports including motorsports, soccer, golf, cricket, tennis and horseracing.  We also have a strong reputation in sports retail and the sourcing and manufacture of sports wear and goods.

Sports law is an aggregation of various different legal disciplines (commercial, contractual, tortious, IP) and sector-specific regulatory knowledge.  Our expertise in both means we are well placed to provide cohesive advice on behalf of businesses and individuals operating in the sports arena.

We are recognised as one of the leading firms in motor sport having acted for Formula One teams for over a decade, during which time we have handled driver contracts, regulatory issues, High Court disputes and ICC arbitrations.  We currently represent Team Lotus having for many years represented Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso.  We have also advised key Formula One sponsors, including Royal Bank of Scotland, Pernod Ricard, Baugur and Anheuser Busch.

We have advised in relation to a number of Premiership football clubs on matters including the acquisition of stakes in and the takeover of such clubs, employment of management and coaching staff, the sponsorship of shirts and stadia and the exploitation of online rights.

Acting for several major businesses in this area, we have a deep understanding of the sports retail and replica shirts sectors and have acted on a number of substantial disputes against retailers, wholesalers, football clubs and licensees.