The Swiss Federal Council has specifically included sporting organisations in its consultation on making the bribery of private individuals a criminal offence, launched 15 May. ‘Switzerland houses a number of international sporting federations which often manage very important economic and financial interests, whose decisions are sometimes marred by corruption scandals’, reads the Explicit Report Concerning the Modification of the Penal Code and the Penal Military Code, which contains the detail on the proposals. ‘Specific points of Swiss standards criminalising corruption are subject to occasional, but fairly regular criticism, including in Parliament as well as from international organisations. A controversy has arisen in particular on suspicion of corruption concerning the awarding procedure for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups…this initiative aims to ensure that sports federations are unambiguously included in the offence of private sector bribery.’ / read more

Vijay Singh has filed a lawsuit seeking damages from the PGA Tour for its ‘reckless administration and implementation of its Anti-Doping Programme’, after it suspended the Fijian golfer for use of ‘deer antler spray’. The lawsuit, filed with the Supreme Court of the State of New York on 8 May, lists seven claims for relief against the PGA Tour for ‘violating its duty of care and good faith’. / read more

A US District Court has denied class action status to a group of sports rights owners seeking to bring a global ‘class action’ copyright infringement claim against YouTube. On 15 May, the US District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that such a class action was impractical, because of the sheer number of potential plaintiffs joining the action and because each one would require a decision based on the facts of their particular case. / read more

On 9 April, a preliminary case was heard in a Philadelphia courtroom as to whether former National Football League (NFL) players should be allowed to bring a collective action against the NFL for failure to prevent brain injury. Patrick Conliffe, a Sports Solicitor with McHale Muldoon Solicitors, examines the case and its potential liability implications. / read more

Eyebrows were raised when in November 2012, a Swiss Federal Court acquitted three players who had confessed to accepting money to manipulate football matches. Dr. Laila Mintas, Head of Legal at FIFA Early Warning System, explains the decision and analyses the difficulties in proving fraud under German and Swiss law. She also explains why the courts will not accept that match manipulators have committed fraud against the spectators. / read more

In Spanish football, pre-contract agreements between football clubs and minors requiring the payment of a penalty clause should the minor join another club, are common. In February, the Spanish Supreme Court ruled that such an agreement requiring payment of a penalty is null and void, and that only training costs should be paid to the training club. In this second instalment of a two-part article, Stephen Sampson, Fernando Gonzalez and Lloyd Thomas of Squire Sanders compare the Baena ruling with the Court of Justice of the European Union’s ruling in Bernard, assessing whether penalty clauses infringe EU law. / read more

In January 2012, the European Commission released a proposal for a regulation that would replace the European Union’s (EU) current Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC). The proposal is now under review in the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers of the EU. Daniel Cooper and Kristof van Quathem, of Covington & Burling LLP, discuss some of the features of the Commission’s proposal that could have an impact on anti-doping practices throughout the EU. Cooper is the World Anti-Doping Agency’s External Privacy Counsel and also advises UK Anti-Doping on how privacy laws apply to drug testing. / read more

The Professional Amateur Sports Protection Act was enacted in 1992 to stop the spread of State-sponsored sports gambling. Nick Buckhart and Dylan Welsh, Saint Louis University Law Graduates, examine the history of PASPA, challenges to it and how these have been bolstered by recent events. / read more

It is often forgotten that UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations are part of its Club Licensing system, which has been in force since 2003. Chris Anderson, an Associate with Brabners Chaffe Street LLP, explains how the Club Licensing system incorporates the Financial Fair Play regulations, and how recent enforcement action indicates UEFA’s determination to become more rigorous in sanctioning clubs for breaches of the rules. / read more