SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT: DESCRIPTION

McKenna Long & Aldridge's Sports and Entertainment practice members have provided practical business-oriented advice and counseling to a wide range of businesses and individuals in the sports and entertainment industries, including:

• Ownership, management and athletes in both professional team and individual sports
• College and university athletic departments and collegiate conferences
• Television news talent
• Companies operating in industries other than sports and entertainment which seek to use sports and entertainment vehicles to enhance their businesses

In these engagements, our practice members have negotiated and advised on a diverse range of transactions, including broadcast, licensing, sponsorship, endorsement, appearance, performance and rights acquisition deals, for clients in the sports and entertainment industries.

A thorough knowledge of the legal and business issues and continually evolving trends affecting our clients enables members of our Sports and Entertainment practice to provide not only effective and efficient legal services, but also consulting and management services, to a wide variety of individuals and entities involved in sports and entertainment. In addition, our Sports and Entertainment practice utilizes the resources and experience of the firm's professionals in other disciplines in order to provide the client with an experienced advisory team.

Members of our Sports and Entertainment practice have assisted, among others: Four-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion, Evander Holyfield, the Georgia Force Arena Football Team, the Georgia Tech Athletic Association, the University of Georgia Athletic Association, the Women's Senior Golf Tour, the Celebrity Players Golf Tour, the Professional Karate Association, the World Boxing League, World Class Sports Management, Real Deal Records, the Holyfield Foundation, Peach Bowl, Inc. and local organizing committees for the Super Bowl and the NCAA Men's and Women's Final Fours.

Our experience has allowed us to handle a broad range of sports and entertainment related transactions, including the representative examples that follow.

• Handled all aspects of the acquisition and relocation of a professional sports franchise
• Negotiated and drafted corporate sponsorship agreements and player contracts for a professional sports team
• Advised and assisted both professional sports franchises and municipalities in structuring and negotiating stadium and arena financing transactions
• Negotiated and drafted the arena lease and rights agreement for a professional sports team

Boxing

• Negotiated numerous fight contracts for boxers, including international world heavyweight championship bouts
• Negotiated numerous pay-per-view telecast agreements
• Provided consulting services for the promotion of the first professional boxing event in China to be televised worldwide
• Helped structure and execute the promotion of a Heavyweight World Championship boxing event that resulted in attendance in excess of 40,000
• Negotiated numerous endorsement, appearance and licensing agreements for boxers

Karate

• Acted as legal counsel and consultants for a major professional full-contact karate pay-per-view program

Golf

• Helped organize the Women's Senior Golf Tour and develop it into the official senior tour of the LPGA
• Negotiated and drafted management and marketing agreements for the Celebrity Players Golf Tour
• Helped structure and provide patent protection for a new professional golf event
• Advised internationally known golf course design firm on contract issues

Soccer

• Advised professional soccer league on structuring of event-related matters
• Represented local organizing committee with respect to its rights and obligations with regard to hosting of championship game and related events

College Athletics

• Advised college athletic department on process for selecting multimedia rights holder and negotiated and drafted multiyear agreement with media and marketing firm to license multimedia rights of college athletic department
• Advised and negotiated agreements for the official web site of a college athletic department
• Advised and negotiated agreements for televised distribution of college athletics
• Advised and negotiated game agreements for college athletic events
• Advised and drafted coaches' contracts
• Handled NCAA compliance matter for collegiate athletic department

Sports Marketing

• Negotiated, structured and drafted numerous sponsorship agreements, including those involving non-profit tax exempt organizations as the rightsholder
• Negotiated, structured and drafted sponsorship sales agency agreements

Athlete Representation

• Handled numerous matters for professional athletes in both professional team and individual sports, including endorsement and appearance and matters unrelated to their sports careers
• Handled the organization of a major charitable foundation of an internationally recognized athlete and have continued to serve as its general counsel and on its Board of Directors

Mass Media Distribution of Sports and Entertainment Events

• Negotiated, structured and drafted numerous license and rights agreements for television, radio, cablevision and pay-per-view distribution of sports and entertainment events

Sports and Entertainment Events

• Drafted numerous agreements related to presentation of sports and entertainment events
• Advised event organizers with respect to rights and responsibilities with regard to events

Entertainment

• Assisted with the organization of a substantial record label and have continued to serve as its general counsel
• Acted as both legal counsel and executive producer for a full-length documentary film
• Advised national developer and operator of shopping malls on media and entertainment-related issues