Sports and Competition Law (LAWS70437)

Commercialised sports in the developed world constitute a multi-billion-dollar industry raising unique issues under competition law. Courts around the world have recognised that clubs that are commercial rivals necessarily need to collaborate in some ways for their sporting competitions to serve the public. Outside of North America, commercialised sports competitions form part of an integrated system of sports, typically under the supervision of a single national governing board. This too raises important questions about the use or abuse of a commercially-dominant position.

The overall structure of sporting competitions is thus potentially subject to judicial challenge under competition law statutes around the world. Specific agreements attributed to multiple parties, or to a single entity with a dominant position, are also subject to competition law challenges by governments, affected stakeholders or consumers.

The lecturer is an international leader in the field of the application of competition law to sports and has authored works dealing with this issue in developed economies, including Australia and New Zealand.

This subject considers the basic principles of competition law statutes applicable in North America, Europe and Australia/New Zealand, as well as relevant principles of the common law of restraint of trade. It then applies these principles in exploring a number of cutting-edge issues in the sports industry, including:

• The formation and structure of sports leagues
• Restrictive labour market practices (salary caps, drafts, limits on free mobility)
• Collective agreements regarding broadcasting, internet commerce, sponsorship, merchandise, intellectual property licensing etc.
• Competitive effects of league or federation rules regarding finances and ownership
• Permissible and impermissible responses to creation of rival competitions.

Application of competition law precedents covers several recurring questions, including the availability of private remedies, market definition and the relevance of non-commercial purposes in justifying conduct that might be clearly unlawful in non-sports industries.

Although the subject assumes no prior knowledge of competition law, other than a review of foundational principles underlying various competition statutes, it offers students with competition law background an opportunity to apply their knowledge to a unique and intellectually challenging setting.