Sports

Skadden has one of the preeminent sports law practices in the country. We have represented a wide range of major sports leagues — including the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the PGA TOUR, the National Football League, the United States Tennis Association, Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer — as well as individual professional teams and their owners, in general litigation, player disputes, mergers, acquisitions, stadium financings, venue leases, corporate financings and project finance work. These high-stakes matters also have included licensing transactions, sponsorship agreements, real estate, intellectual property, antitrust, corporate, labor, insurance, player health safety, anti-doping and league governance issues.

Our attorneys have a thorough understanding of the legal challenges that can arise in the sports world and the best approaches for addressing those issues. We serve as a principal outside counsel to both the NBA and NHL and have been involved in nearly every major legal decision affecting these leagues for more than two decades. Additionally, we have played a principal role in many of the most high-profile matters on behalf of professional and amateur sports organizations and teams.

Skadden’s hallmark across disciplines is our ability to handle the most challenging issues our clients face, including many first-of-their-kind matters. Our sports practice is no different. In the litigation area, we have represented the NHL in multidistrict litigation brought by a putative class of retired players for personal injuries arising from concussive and sub-concussive injuries sustained while playing in the league, as well as the NCAA in federal antitrust class actions by Division I football and basketball players challenging amateurism rules barring compensation for student athletes.