In brief:
- On 16 September, Mishcon de Reya’s Sports Group brought together leading lawyers, executives and industry practitioners for its Annual Sports Conference, Game changers: Law, power and the business of modern sport.
- Across three panels, speakers examined the legal, regulatory and commercial forces reshaping modern sport, with discussions ranging from the role of legal challenges in determining sporting outcomes, changes to football’s financial rules and how changing fan behaviour is evolving the media landscape.
- Below is a summary of each panel and our top three takeaways.
After the final whistle or lap, can the law change a sporting result?
This panel considered a deceptively simple question: once the final whistle has blown or the chequered flag has fallen, can lawyers, regulators or the courts change the result? The panel, comprised of Otmar Szafnauer (a former Formula 1 Team Principal), Caroline McGrory (Chief Legal Officer of Cadillac F1), Nick de Marco KC (Blackstone Chambers) and Kavan Bakhda (Partner and Head of the Sports Group at Mishcon de Reya), considered the various different stakeholders and views that are considered before a legal challenge to a sporting result is advanced.
Key takeaways
- Sporting finality is important, but not always absolute. Challenges may arise where there are questions about the interpretation of regulations, procedural fairness, governance or the integrity of a competition.
- Legal and commercial strategies are closely connected. Decisions about whether to challenge a ruling are influenced not only by the legal merits but also by points, prize money, sponsorship and the wider future of a team or athlete.
- Challenges can have consequences beyond a single result. A dispute may test the scope of a governing body’s powers, expose weaknesses in regulations and influence how future rules are drafted and enforced.
Financial (un)fair play in football
This panel, comprised of Robert Griffiths, Partner (Mishcon de Reya) Jane Mulcahy KC (Blackstone Chambers) and John Pelling Senior Director Football Finance (West Bromwich Albion Football Club), examined football’s changing financial regulatory landscape, including profit and sustainability requirements, squad cost controls and the practical impact of regulatory proceedings on clubs.
Key takeaways
- Small financial margins can have significant sporting consequences. The extent of a financial breach may determine the severity of a points deduction, with potentially serious implications for a club’s league position.
- Compressed regulatory timetables create practical challenges. Clubs may have limited time to respond to a charge, gather evidence and prepare complex legal and accounting submissions.
- Financial cases are rarely straightforward. Issues such as amortisation and the treatment of particular costs can require extensive expert evidence and detailed consideration by the relevant panel.
Following the fans: how shifting fan behaviour is challenging sport’s commercial models
This panel, comprised of Richard McMorris, Partner (Mishcon de Reya), Sameer Pabari Media Rights Executive and Tom Burrows, Director of Media Rights (Relevent Football Partners), explored how changes in the way supporters explored how changes in the ways supporters discover, consume and engage with sport are affecting the industry’s established commercial models.
Key takeaways
- Fan behaviour is changing the economics of sport. Media rights remain central to the funding of sport, but changing fan behaviour is increasing the importance of alternative revenue streams and direct relationships with supporters.
- Media has a broader commercial role. Alongside generating rights revenue, media can help sports organisations build their brands, collect first-party data and support sponsorship and merchandise income.
- Reach and revenue must be balanced. The challenge is not simply to maximise short-term rights income. Competitions must also remain visible and accessible enough to attract and retain future generations of supporters.
Looking across the three sessions
Although each panel approached the industry from a different perspective, a common theme emerged: legal, regulatory and commercial strategy in modern sport can no longer be considered separately.
Changing fan behaviour affects the value and distribution of media rights. Financial regulations shape clubs’ sporting and investment decisions. Disputes about rules and results can determine points, championships, prize money and, in some cases, the future of a team or athlete.
Together, the sessions demonstrated how power in modern sport increasingly operates across the pitch, the boardroom and the courtroom.
How Mishcon de Reya can help
Mishcon de Reya's Sports Group advises rights holders, clubs, governing bodies, investors and sports businesses on disputes, regulation, governance, financial fair play, commercial agreements, sponsorship, intellectual property, data and strategic transactions.
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