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By: Simon Leaf

Simon Leaf is a Partner at Mishcon de Reya specialising in Sport and Technology.

All 9 Articles
  • What to expect from sports law in 2025: Man City, Saudi and the ‘unlikely MVP’

    Sport Business

    What will the big talking points be in sports law in 2025? We asked the experts at one of the industry’s top firms. This year will be remembered as one in which key sporting decisions were made in the courtroom rather than the boardroom. With the Football Governance Bill, ongoing financial regulatory disputes, and the [...]

    A decision in Manchester City's dispute with the Premier League will be one of the sports law stories of 2025
  • Election 2024: What are Tories, Labour and Lib Dems pledging on sport?

    opinion

    With the General Election just a matter of days away, we assess the approach that the major parties have taken when it comes to sport in their respective manifestos and what the potential consequences may be for the future of sport. Football Governance Bill The Football Governance Bill was one of the major legislative casualties [...]

    With the General Election just a matter of days away, we assess the approach that the major parties have taken when it comes to sport in their respective manifestos and what the potential consequences may be for the future of sport.
  • A leading sports lawyer explains what the football regulator will and won’t do

    Opinion

    Why the football regulator could end up being a halfway house.

    Culture secretary Lucy Frazer launched the Football Governance Bill, which incorporates the football regulator, today
  • Middle East investment in Manchester United or Liverpool: Sports law predictions for 2023

    December 29, 2022

    As has become traditional at this time of year, City A.M. has called on the wisdom of Mishcon de Reya’s Simon Leaf and Tom Murray to dust off the crystal ball, don their best Mystic Meg outfits and offer their sports law predictions for next year. So here is our take on 2023 – and [...]

  • Players as part owners: Is Cesc Fabregas’ deal with Como the future of football?

    August 14, 2022

    As athletes transition to life after professional sport it is natural for them to consider what comes next, and such considerations were highlighted recently by Cesc Fabregas’ recent signing with FC Como. In addition to his wages, the Italian club has said that Fabregas will also become a co-owner. So could this be a trend [...]

  • Sports law year in review 2021: Were our predictions right?

    December 26, 2021

    In December 2020, while others may have been preparing for muted New Year’s Eve celebrations in light of the new coronavirus variant, we were busy making sports law predictions for the year ahead for City A.M. In summary, we predicted a rise in data-related disputes on the back of Project Red Card, the further growth [...]

  • Premier League on rocky road with plans to regulate sponsorship deals in wake of Newcastle takeover

    November 18, 2021

    The recent takeover of Newcastle United by the Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund created quite a storm – both in the media and, according to reports, the other Premier League clubs. Since the introduction of so-called financial fair play regulations at the start of season 2013-14 – known as the Profitability and Sustainability Rules in [...]

  • Sports law in 2021: Data disputes, the evolution of esports, all eyes on Premier League TV rights, and rules tighten for clubs and agents

    December 31, 2020

    While there may not have been as much action on the pitch in 2020, this year has been an eventful one for sports lawyers off the pitch to say the least.  Coronavirus has acted as a magnifying glass, intensifying the financial and legal pressures that those in the sports ecosystem face.  But how is 2021 [...]

  • Why the Rugby World Cup could force up player wages and bring legal challenges to the sport’s salary cap

    October 31, 2019

    When Japan and South Korea hosted football’s World Cup in 2002, it precipitated a significant increase in Asian investment in the sport. Takeovers of high-profile European clubs followed, as did multi-million pound Asia-only sponsorship deals with star players. With the first Rugby World Cup to be held in Asia about to conclude, this milestone could [...]

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