Tag Archives: Premier League

‘Is Football the Same Without Fans?’: Valuable lessons when negotiating broadcasting agreements

Last month, it was reported that the value of the overseas broadcasting deals entered into by the English Premier League (‘EPL‘) nudged past the £5 billion threshold for the 2022-25 rights cycle, whilst also surpassing the value of domestic deals for the same cycle for the first time. Given these substantial investments, it is no … Continue Reading

Concussion in football

On Sunday evening, a clash of heads between David Luiz and Raul Jimenez in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers gave public attention (again) to the issue around concussion protocols in football. Alan Shearer considers it a matter of “life and death” as he urged the sport to change the rules on … Continue Reading

Are Digital Health Passports the Key to Unlocking UK Stadiums? The data privacy perspective

The ban on mass gatherings in order to combat the spread of COVID-19 resulted in the cancellation or postponement of sporting fixtures and live events globally. This includes the English Premier League that had to postpone all fixtures following the lockdown. On 10 May 2020, Boris Johnson announced that, as part of the UK government’s … Continue Reading

How the top European football leagues are dealing with their 2019/20 seasons

Over the course of the last two months professional football across Europe has ground to a halt. In an attempt to lend some shape and certainty to the European football landscape, UEFA announced in April that all its European members had until 25 May to make a decision about their respective leagues. Some leagues have … Continue Reading

Esports & the global pandemic

As the world of traditional sports has ground to halt, esports has garnered much media attention, certainly in respect of those esports that operate within the purview of traditional sports. The esports industry was already thriving before the pandemic, attracting billions of pounds in revenues and huge viewing audiences. With the world on lockdown and … Continue Reading

HANDBALL!!! I think…

Sunday saw one of the most anticipated games of the 19/20 Premier League season as Liverpool FC hosted Manchester City at Anfield. Liverpool came away with the three points, however the victory was not without controversy. There were a number of decisions, which left Manchester City fans feeling aggrieved and the general football community becoming … Continue Reading

Infringers walk the plank as the Premier League’s anti-piracy campaign scores big success

Between 2016 and 2019 the Premier League was paid a record breaking £5 billion for UK rights by broadcasters for 168 games a season. A new deal, effective from 2019 to 2022, will see the Premier League make at least £4.46 billion from the UK rights to broadcast matches (with one broadcaster not disclosing how … Continue Reading

Nike’s “City Edition” NBA uniforms: a sign of things to come?

In 2015, it was announced that Nike had agreed an apparel deal with the NBA, beginning with the 2017-2018 season.  At the time, Adam Silver, the NBA Commissioner, stated that: “This partnership with Nike represents a new paradigm in the structure of our global merchandising business.  As our exclusive oncourt apparel provider, Nike will be … Continue Reading

Premier League scores second ‘live’ blocking injunction

In May 2017, Sports Shorts covered the first ‘live’ blocking injunction ordered by the High Court in favour of the Premier League – a decision which represented a win not only for rightsholders but also, unusually, for the defendant ISPs in their capacity as Premier League rightsholders.  The order, which applied during the final weeks … Continue Reading

The romance of the FA Cup: are managers required by regulation to pick full-strength sides?

In the week following Valentine’s Day, the much-vaunted romance of the FA Cup appeared to experience something of a rekindling.  While the fire in the loins of the world’s oldest football competition was subsequently dampened by “Pie-gate” (as to which, Sports Shorts’ thoughts are here), the FA Cup quarter-finals will see their first non-league representative … Continue Reading
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