Entertainment & Sports

The Entertainment and Sports industries have experienced exponential growth over the last two decades, evolving into highly sophisticated and profitable businesses which have embraced new technologies and new media to meet consumer habits and demand.

We advise the main stakeholders and investors in the rapidly growing business of entertainment and sport. These increasingly sophisticated industries turn to us for best-in class legal services. Our clients include media businesses, governing bodies, broadcasters, financial investors and high-profile clubs and sports organisations.

Our global team operates at the apex of the market, advising on complex M&A transactions and disputes around the world which are shaping the entertainment and sports industries.

We have an outstanding track record, unmatched by any other law firm, and an in-depth understanding of the growth drivers of entertainment and sport. We are therefore best placed to help our clients to navigate the challenges and more importantly, to capitalise on the opportunities.

Entertainment

Our Entertainment specialists advise a broad range of clients, including digital platforms, broadcast channels, publishing companies, film and music producers, digital and new media companies, videogame studios, streaming services and financial investors on:

Mergers and acquisitions and finance transactions concerning entertainment companies
Corporate reorganisations
Dispute resolution
Commercial contracts
Content licensing, development, production and distribution agreements
Data privacy
Complex digital media and technology agreements
Intellectual property licensing agreements
State aid and regulatory compliance including investigations conducted by regulatory authorities

Sports

Our cross-practice Sports specialists regularly advise the sports industry's top stakeholders including clubs, financial investors, athletes, organising committees, agencies and e-gaming and esports companies on:

Mergers and acquisitions and finance transactions concerning sports companies
Corporate reorganisations
Finance structuring of stadiums and other sport-related infrastructure
Dispute resolution
Negotiation of commercial contracts, including broadcasting rights and sponsorship agreements
Setting up the legal infrastructure around the organisation of large sports tournaments
Negotiation of financing of clubs
Sports regulations

Client experience

Entertainment

Spotify in winning a complaint before the European Commission against Apple for undermining Spotify as a competitor of Apple Music on the Apple platform. The complaint was filed in March 2019, together with the launch of the public "Time to Play Fair" campaign.
Tencent on its investment into Primer, a UK based fast-growing payment services provider with business across Europe, Asia Pacific and the US markets.
Comcast on the $2.3 billion purchase of 49 percent it does not already own in Universal Studios Japan from an investor group that includes Goldman Sachs. We previously advised Comcast on the purchase of the initial 51% of the shares in USJ Co. The deal values the Japanese theme park operator at $7.5 billion, including the assumption of net debt, according to Reuters.
News Group Newspapers in its high-profile civil litigation defending hundreds of claims for misuse of private information relating to voicemail interception and other unlawful information gathering at The News of the World and The Sun.
Technicolor on the sale to Francisco Partners of Grass Valleys broadcast business worldwide.

Sports

The European Super League Company and A22 Sports Management on the creation, financing and related competition proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) which evaluated the monopoly on football exercised by UEFA and FIFA. In a groundbreaking judgment, the CJEU ruled that the market for organisation of sports tournaments is not a monopoly held by UEFA and FIFA.
Manchester City Football Club in relation to various commercial and regulatory issues.
Real Madrid C. F. on its strategic agreement with Sixth Street and Legends with the aim of making the stadium a benchmark for leisure and entertainment globally.
Kroenke Sports & Entertainment on the acquisition of a majority shareholding in Arsenal FC.
Four leading sports agency clients, CAA Base, Stellar, Wasserman and Arête, in a successful landmark competition law case against FIFA and The Football Association. The award resulted in a significant change to FIFA’s proposed agent regulations.
Sixth Street on the acquisition of 25% of F.C. Barcelona´s LaLiga TV rights for 25 years.