Sports Law

Trusted Advisors to Governing Bodies, Clubs and Athletes

Holmes provides integrated legal advice across the sports sector. We act for governing bodies, clubs, athletes and coaches, and advise on the commercial relationships that operate alongside them, combining deep sector knowledge with the strength of a full-service commercial firm.

Our sports law team is supported by our recognised practices in litigation and dispute resolution, employment, corporate governance, public law, insurance and intellectual property. This multidisciplinary capability means we can deliver practical, joined-up advice tailored to the needs of athletes and modern sport organisations, from day-to-day governance and compliance to complex, high-stakes disputes.

In addition to providing legal advice, our partner, David Curran, is a guest lecturer on the Sports Law and Sports Dispute Resolution course with the School of Law and Criminology at Maynooth University.

Why Choose Holmes?

Genuine sector involvement . Our partners sit at the heart of Irish sport, holding disciplinary, arbitration and appeals roles across the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), the Irish Football Association (IFA) and Cycling Ireland (CI). 

Full-service capability. Commercial contracts, employment, dispute resolution, governance, regulatory compliance, insurance, intellectual property, real estate and disciplinary investigations, all under one roof.

Trusted by governing bodies. We act, or have acted, for 22 sports clubs, governing bodies and other sports organisations, including regulatory and licensing bodies, on the issues that matter most to how they operate.

National Reach, Local Roots

Holmes advises sport organisations nationally and internationally from offices in Dublin, Limerick and Cork. We act for a national statutory sports regulator, represent regulatory and licensing bodies in judicial review proceedings up to the Supreme Court, and negotiate professional contracts for rugby and soccer players. Our partners also hold disciplinary, arbitration and appeals roles with the GAA, the Irish Football Association and Cycling Ireland.

Locally, our long-established Limerick office provides sports law advice to clubs and governing bodies across the Mid-West, with direct access to a full-service commercial firm. Our team is embedded in the region’s sport, from chairing the Limerick GAA Hearings Committee to advising Limerick GAA on its bye-laws. We act for local clubs in Gaelic games, rugby, soccer, tennis and golf on corporate structure, property, employment and disciplinary matters.

Our Sports Law Expertise

Governance and Regulatory Compliance

• Advising governing and regulatory bodies on governance structures and compliance frameworks.
• Acting for licensing and regulatory bodies in judicial review proceedings before the High Court, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.
• Advising on the interpretation and application of sector-specific legislation and rules of competition.
• Advising sport organisations and their insurers on child safeguarding matters. This involves advising on governance and disciplinary procedures, safeguarding obligations, compliance with applicable child protection frameworks, risk management, regulatory considerations and stakeholder communications and advising both sports organisations and their insurers as to whether such matters are covered under their public liability insurance policies.
• Advising on trust law including the retirement of trustees, appointment of new trustees, constitutional requirements in relation to same, the resulting transfer of title to club property to the new trustee group and the registration of Land Registry inhibitions to protect trustees.

Disciplinary, Arbitration and Dispute Resolution

• Conducting and chairing disciplinary investigations and hearings.
• Sports arbitration and appeals, drawing on our partners’ hands-on roles across Irish sporting bodies.
• Litigation and dispute resolution across all courts, supported by our recognised commercial litigation practice.
• Cathal Minihane, partner, has served as Chairperson of the Limerick GAA Hearings Committee adjudicating on disciplinary hearings for more than 10 years.

Commercial Contracts and Employment

• Advising on the sale of soccer clubs.
• Drafting and negotiating commercial contracts, including grant agreements, funding arrangements and sponsorhsip and naming rights.
• Advising on employment matters affecting clubs, sports organisations and their personnel.
• Advising on rugby and soccer player professional contracts.
• Advising sports people on career transition and their post-playing careers.
• Intellectual property protection including advising on image licensing rights managed by Irish corporates.
• Insurance and liability, and health and safety.

Banking and Finance

• Advising credit unions on community lending to local sports clubs.
• Advising soccer clubs on secured lending and endowments in the context of the Immigrant Investment Programme.

Real Estate, Development and Infrastructure

• Advising on the development of sport and training facilities, including grant-aided projects with government and European Investment Bank (EIB) funding requirements.
• Acquisition and disposal of sports grounds, including title and planning due diligence.
• Leases and licenses for stadia, arenas, clubhouses and other club property and vesting leases in corporate structures.

Clubs and venues also need licensing advice, from club and restaurant certificates to occasional licenses and public dance licensing. Our licensing team handles these applications and any objections.

Litigation & Dispute Resolution

• Advising sports and leisure operators on negligence and personal injury claims.
• Acting in the defence of personal injury proceedings involving sports clubs (operating indoor and outdoor facilities) and gym operators.
• Advising clubs on player safety and liability issues arising from sporting events and competitions.
• Advising equestrian riding schools on liability for rider injuries and risk management obligations.
• Advising on waivers, assumptions of risk and other contractual provisions designed to manage liability exposure.

Representative Experience

Sports regulation and governance

Acting for a national statutory body responsible for regulating a professional sport, including the licensing of venues, the issuing of permits to officials and participants, and the implementation of the rules of the sport. This work has included:

• Acting for a body in respect of all its licensed venues nationwide.
• Drafting a grant agreement with a venue operator and advising on its interpretation.
• Acting for a body in statutory prosecutions before the District Court.

We have also advised Limerick GAA on revision of its bye-laws.

Facilities and infrastructure

• Advising a third-level institution on the development of a rugby training centre: a grant-aided project involving the requirements of several government departments and the EIB, including the lease and licence of the facility.
• Advising a third-level institution on acquiring a sports ground from a rugby club, including all title and planning due diligence.
• Advising an education institution on the installation and operation of Padel courts by a third-party operator.

Venues

Acting for concert halls, sports arenas, heritage venues and sporting bodies on licensing applications and objections.

Clubs and organisations

Advising a broad range of sports clubs including GAA, rugby, soccer, tennis, golf and bridge on matters such as regularising corporate structures and acquiring land for clubhouses and playing pitches.

Speak to Our Sports Law Team

Looking for expert legal advice on a sports law matter? Speak to our team today to arrange a confidential consultation.