Sports
Professional and collegiate sports teams have a cadre of professionals throughout their organizations working hard to support the athletes, manage budgets, oversee extensive operations, market and promote the teams, adhere to strict and evolving rules and regulations, stay innovative, and address a range of legal and personnel issues. From owners, coaches, athletes, trainers and scouts to professionals in finance, sales, facilities, marketing, and human resources, they collectively support the organization’s goal of operating profitably and efficiently while striving to win games.
Advising on a wide variety of legal matters, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr attorneys represent clients across the sports spectrum, including professional sports teams in leagues such as the NBA, NFL, MLB and NHL as well as university sports teams and collegiate athletic organizations. We also advise developers and operators of sports facilities and surrounding entertainment centers. We are well-versed in the nuances of matters from the front office down to the field, court or ice and beyond, including in these areas:
Corporate
- General corporate – commercial agreements, governance, partnership matters, new ventures in areas such as esports, and various front-office matters
- Financing – debt and equity capital-raising transactions; and sports stadium financing through public private partnerships (P3), EB-5 offerings and tax-exempt bonds
- Mergers, acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures and strategic alliances
- Investments – fund formation and investment opportunities on behalf of sports teams, private equity funds, venture capital funds, wealth funds, strategic investors and family offices
- Sports sponsorships – event contracts, broadcast agreements and naming rights
- Sports broadcasting agreements between on-air professionals and media outlets
- Tax – domestic and international tax planning and Internal Revenue Service inquiries and disputes
Real Estate, including the purchase and sale of land, financing, development, land use rights, zoning, leasing, and appeals
Construction, including the development of arenas and stadiums and surrounding entertainment centers
Intellectual property, including matters related to trademarks, patents, licensing and merchandising
Professional sports rules and regulations, including evaluating league rules and regulations and advising on how they impact various professional sports activities
Collegiate compliance rules, including evaluating compliance rules of the NCAA and conferences, such as Big 12 and Division III, and advising on how they impact various collegiate athletic activities
Litigation, including player trade disputes, class actions and breach-of-contract disputes, and NCAA inquiries and disputes
Labor and employment, including employment agreements, employee handbook/policy requirements, athlete handbooks, collective bargaining agreements, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) matters
Securities, including representing participants in the industry with federal securities law issues
Employee benefits and executive compensation
Cybersecurity and data privacy
Immigration, including employment-based visas
Estate planning, including business succession planning
Click on the links below for overviews of our work in these areas: