Sports law attorneys handle employment and labor-related issues, the drafting and negotiation of contracts, compensation packages, antitrust matters, scholastic and collegiate compliance matters, and licensing-related issues. They also deal with NCAA, Title IX, lobbying and legislative, compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, risk management, and federal and state governmental affairs matters.
The practice of sports law can be divided into three primary areas: amateur, professional, and international sports. However there is a "gray area" that sometimes blurs the distinction between the amateur and the professional athlete. Student athletes at colleges and universities may have their expenses paid through scholarships and other forms of compensation that are not always available to the non-athlete; additionally, there have been cases when an athlete has been classified as an amateur in one sport but allowed to participate "professionally" in another. The National Collegiate Athletic Association is the governing body for intercollegiate sports and has a membership of over 1,000 colleges and universities.
In most American professional sports leagues, players and owners relate to one another by way of a "standard player's contract" which can be adapted from one player to the next. Most players are now represented by agents, with their duties and compensation outlined in standard representation contracts. In international competition, the International Olympic Committee oversees the Olympics, while FIFA, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, sponsors the World Cup. The United States Olympic Committee administers policy for events in which U.S. teams compete, including the Olympics and the Pan Am games.
Many important cases have influenced the statutes and regulations that shape the business of professional sports and sports law. Here are some significant legal milestones:
1906-1910 — One hundred years ago, collegiate football lacked pads and helmets and was extremely violent, even deadly. Eighteen players were killed during the 1905 season. President Teddy Roosevelt's intervention led to the founding of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association. By 1910, the organization was renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Administration (NCAA).
1919-1920 — The "Black Sox" scandal of 1919 involved eight members of the Chicago White Sox who were accused of accepting money to "intentionally lose the World Series." However, they were never convicted. One year later the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball was created.
1922 — In Federal Baseball v. National League, the Supreme Court concluded that professional baseball was not subject to antitrust law, and the Antitrust Exemption was born.
1938 — Pittsburgh Athletic Company v. KQV involved unauthorized radio broadcasts of Pittsburgh Pirate games.
1947 — The unwritten code of racial discrimination in baseball ended when Jackie Robinson took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Over the next ten years, the Negro leagues were disbanded, and the game was officially integrated.
1951 — The City College Basketball Scandal made headlines when several members of the school's men's basketball team admitted that they took money to "fix" the point spread.
1954 — The baseball Major League Players' Association and National Basketball Players' Association were formed.
1956 — The National Football League Players' Association was formed.
1957 — The National Hockey League Players' Association was formed.
1966 — Marvin Miller became the head of the Major League Baseball Players Association.
1968 — After winning the gold and bronze medals in the 200 meter race at the Mexico City Olympics, Tommy Smith and John Carlos, two African-American sprinters, raised their fists during the playing of the U.S. national anthem. IOC President Avery Brundage was adamant that they be expelled.
1971 — The Supreme Court reinstated Muhammad Ali's boxing license. The New York State Athletic Commission and several other states had suspended it when Ali claimed conscientious objector status on religious grounds.
1972 — In 1969, St. Louis Cardinal Curt Flood had refused to accept a trade to Philadelphia and demanded to act as a free agent. He lost his case before the Supreme Court in Flood v. Kuhn.
1972 — Title IX passed, guaranteeing equal opportunities for men and women in federally funded educational programs and prohibiting sex-based discrimination in any educational program or activity receiving federal funding.
1975 — The era of baseball free agency began with a dispute involving Los Angeles Dodger Andy Messersmith and Montreal Expo Dave McNally.
1978 — The Amateur Sports Act was passed, reorganizing the USOC.
1980s — IOC President Lord Killanin and his successor Juan Antonio Samaranch pushed to open the Olympic Games to non-amateurs.
1988-91 — After forcing an unsuccessful football strike, the NFL players union failed to abolish the rules restricting free agency rights.
1993 — The current NFL collective bargaining agreement was ratified.
1994-1995 — Major League baseball players went on strike, and for the first time, the World Series was cancelled. Not long afterward, the present collective bargaining agreement was negotiated.
1995 — The Bosman ruling created free agency in Europe.
1995 and 1998 — Player lockouts in the NHL and NBA cancelled large segments of their respective seasons.
1998 — President Clinton signed the "Curt Flood Act" which eliminated baseball's Antitrust Exemption.
