The increasing development of sport-related legal issues in the world, has led to the needs of a specific branch of law, so-called Sports Law.
The UIA’s Sports Law Commission has the objective to study and analyze every aspect of this subject, with a research activity aimed to understanding the "legal side of sport" which is always evolving.
Inter alia, the Sports Law Commission is working on these matters:
- Sports Regulations: to analyze the organization and the regulations of sport in the world, also considering the rules of the International Olympic Committee (I.O.C.) and of its organs and the relationship between these rules and States Laws in the world;
- Sports Justice: to examine all the regulations regarding sports disputes that arise between athletes, sports clubs and sports organizations (Ifs, NFs, etc.). This matter also concerns the organization of "sports justice bodies" and the technical aspects related to mediation and arbitration in sport;
- Sports Labour Law: to study all possible aspects about the rights of sporting persons and the problems connected to possible conflicts arising;
- Sports Contract Law: to examine the contractual relations in sport, at international and national level, especially about: sports sponsorship contracts, sport merchandising contracts, image rights, etc.;
- Media and Sports: to examine peculiar aspects connected to the exploitation of sport events in the media, including new technologies;
- Criminal Law and Sport: to consider all problem related to connections between criminal activities and sport such as: hooliganism, juridical consequences of assault between competitor during sports competition, illegal gambling, cases of match-fixing, etc.;
- Liability in Sport: to see responsibilities arising from accidents among athletes to injuries and spectators’ involvement during sporting events;
- Anti-“doping” practice: to monitor the development of the rulings and legislations to fight this dangerous and unfair practice; so eg.: the UNESCO International Convention Against Doping in Sport, the Code of WADA, sports rules which give to the “Tribunal Arbitral du Sport” in Lausanne the competence to decide on the issue of doping; the judgements of sports justice bodies about violation of rules against doping.
The Sports Law Commission holds, often jointly with other commissions on linked matters, an annual session at the congress and aims to organize conferences and seminars through the year in different countries.
