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SPORTS

Our Sports team provides support to a broad range of clients, including:

  • Insurers
  • Reinsurers and other risk carriers
  • Event organisers and venues
  • Clubs – at both professional and grassroots level
  • Manufacturers and suppliers
  • Leisure activity, outdoor pursuits and adventure activity providers
  • National and international governing bodies

Our clients are passionate about sport, and the benefit and enjoyment sport brings to participants and the wider communities of spectators, fans and society. We share that passion, and are committed to supporting our clients in navigating the legal and regulatory landscape in which they operate.

Experts in Sports law

Our experts are on hand to support clients when serious incidents occur, including managing the immediate incident response and PR implications, resolving civil damages claims, regulatory and criminal investigations including complex Inquests and Fatal Accident Inquiries, commercial disputes and advising on insurance coverage and wordings. Our clients benefit from a joined-up, pragmatic and commercial strategy, as we centralise the management of each matter under one firm and in one dedicated expert team.

We know that incidents do not occur in a vacuum and the team has decades of combined experience working specifically with sporting clients. This in-depth sector understanding is valued by our clients as it means we can quickly understand and deliver on our clients’ aims at the same time as protecting reputations and commercial realities.

Our team also works closely with our insured and corporate clients to limit the likelihood of incidents and disputes occurring, by sharing our dual expertise in risk management and claims defensibility, and developing and implementing tailored plans for risk mitigation.

Coverage and risk analysis is also a central part of our offering, and our experts frequently advise on policy wordings and coverage across different types of policies and jurisdictions.

Imogen Webb

Imogen
Webb

Head of Sports

Embodying a shared passion for the dynamic world of sports, our highly skilled Sports team is a dedicated ally for our clients. We bring decades of combined expertise to the intricate legal landscape of the sports sector, ensuring a comprehensive and streamlined approach.

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Our Expertise

UK & International Casualty – including Catastrophic and Fatal Incidents

Our lawyers have handled some of the most high profile, and high value claims in recent decades, including claims involving world renowned sports stars and teams. Clients operating in the sporting sector require a tailored service and our experts have exceptional experience of supporting clients with the commercial and reputational fall-out from incidents, alongside managing the legal and procedural requirements.

Regulatory & Criminal Defence and Inquests

We have a proven track record of supporting clients facing prosecutions arising from serious injury and fatal incidents. Many of these prosecutions are covered widely in the national and international press and include incidents arising in a range of circumstances from adventure activities, through to professional sporting contests. Our clients benefit from our team’s aligned approach between any criminal, civil and Inquest proceedings, and our keen awareness of the need for reputation management.

Risk Management & Claims Defensibility

We have wide-ranging experience of mapping risk and exposure in sports organisations, including in-depth reviews of risk assessments, internal processes and contractual arrangements. We develop bespoke strategies to identify and minimise risks in line with best practice. We are there every step of the way to support with drafting, training and implementation.

Coverage

We know that our client’s businesses depend on having appropriate and robust coverage in place in case if the worst happens and a claim arises. We provide invaluable advice and guidance on policy coverage, minimum insurance requirements, insurance programmes and drafting queries to insurers and policyholders in the London Market, UK retail market and internationally.

When coverage disputes arise, our technical specialists are there to deliver the right outcome for our clients including advice on issues such as dual insurance, notification requirements, condition precedents and exclusions.

Commercial Advisory and Disputes

Our corporate and commercial team specialise in drafting and negotiating all forms of agreements that are fundamental to our sports businesses and organisations, from sponsorship to broadcasting and event organisation. The team can also assist with (moved) M&A, equity and debt financing, capital markets and IPO’s, corporate restructuring and insolvency matters.

When a dispute arises, our team combines commercial, dispute resolution and sports sector expertise to ensure the best possible outcomes for our clients internationally.

Discrimination, Safeguarding & Abuse

We have considerable experience and expertise in supporting clients with all aspects of regulatory prosecutions and civil claims arising from complaints of abuse, sexual assault, harassment, GDPR and data concerns and discrimination. Aside from claims, we advise and support with risk management and reputational risk and media management services.

Contact us

For expert legal advice from real people in our specialist teams, get in touch – we look forward to hearing from you.

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Publications

A Collision of Two Halves

Irish Admiralty High Court Offers Rare Guidance on International Collision of Vessels under the COLREGS 1972   “After a period...

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