The Sports Law Biz Podcast

In this episode, Peter speaks with Francisco “Cisco” Terreros, a FIFA registered intermediary/agent and the Chief Marketing Officer and head of the global soccer division for SBX Group, a full-service sports, entertainment and lifestyle marketing agency. Cisco is also the founder of Hanging Cleats, a non-profit organization with a goal to provide a better path for underprivileged children through soccer. Peter and Cisco discuss Cisco’s varied experiences in soccer, sports marketing, and player representation. You can follow Cisco on twitter here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Allison Galer, the founder of the agency Disrupt the Game, a sports and entertainment agency that seeks to  actualize competitive advantages through a combination of innovation and invention. She was also recently profiled by ESPNW. Peter and Allison discuss Allison’s experiences in starting her own agency and what kinds of issues she deal with having clients in various countries throughout the world. They even briefly discuss international tax law!∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Richard Kanter, the founder and principal of Kanter Legal, a law firm focused on the special interests of coaches, athletes, entrepreneurs, and small business owners. You can follow him on twitter here. Peter and Richard discuss Richard’s experiences in starting his own law firm and what kinds of issues arise in the context of representation of baseball coaches. Richard also provides some good advice for law students and young lawyers interested in pursuing a career in sports law.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Tammi Gaw, an attorney, athletic trainer and advocate and the founder and executive director of Advantage Rule, LLC. Peter speaks with Tammi about her unique career path and then they discuss the approach of the Historical Basketball League (HBL) to healthcare of its college athletes. They discuss how the HBL views athletes as employees (in contrast to the NCAA’s approach) and thus will provide worker’s compensation to athletes to cover ongoing physical issues as a result of playing in the league. You can follow Tammi on twitter here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Sarah Hartley, a partner in the Denver office of international law firm Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner and an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado Law School. Peter and Sarah discuss her experience in helping formulate the rules and procedures for the US Center for SafeSport and they discuss how SafeSport operates as a tool to help protect athletes from abuse. You can follow Sarah on twitter here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Justin Sievert, a founding partner at the law firm of Sievert Werly and chair of the firm’s College Sports Law Practice. You can follow him on twitter here. Peter and Justin discuss Justin’s experience in starting his own law firm and what kinds of issues arise in a college sports law practice. Justin also provides some good advice for law students and young sports lawyers interested in pursuing a career in college sports law.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Ryan Fairchild, an attorney at the firm of Brooks Pierce with a practice in the esports industry. You can follow him on twitter here. Peter and Ryan discuss the esports industry generally and what kind of legal issues arise related to this new and growing industry.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Mark Burns, the Founder and Editor-in Chief of the Sports Business Chronicle, a new subscription-based digital media company covering #sportsbiz centered around a community-based model. You can follow him on twitter here and the Sports Business Chronicle here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Dave Berri, a Professor of Economics at Southern Utah University at Southern Utah University. He's also the lead author of two revolutionary sports analytics books – The Wages of Wins and Stumbling on Wins. They discuss the history and future of the WNBA and how it compares with other professional sports leagues. You can follow him on twitter here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Bobbi-Sue Doyle-Hazard, assistant general counsel for a professional sports franchise and host of the Leveling the Playing Field podcast. They discuss Bobbi-Sue’s career trajectory as well as her new podcast, which features women in sports. You can find the iTunes link for her podcast here and you can reach her on twitter here. You definitely don’t want to miss out on her wisdom on twitter, both personally and professionally!∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Ricky Volante, one of the co-founders of the Historical Basketball League, along with Andy Schwarz and Bijan Bayne. They discuss the background of the basketball league, its current status and future plans to work with HBCUs to set up a league where players can be paid, outside of the NCAA varsity basketball system.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Brian Socolow, the Co-Chair of the Sports group at Loeb & Loeb, an international law firm. Brian speaks about his career as an attorney practicing “sports law” at a large law firm, including the challenges and opportunities that he has encountered. This podcast will be of particular interest to law students and lawyers interested in pursuing a career in sports law.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Nancy Hogshead-Makar, an Olympic Swimmer and CEO of Champion Women, an advocacy organization for girls and women in sports. Topics covered include Title IX and combating sexual abuse. These topics might be difficult to listen to, but the discussion is important. Champion Women has opportunities for research assistants if you are interested. You can follow Nancy on twitter here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Chris Deubert, a Senior Law and Ethics Associate for the Law and Ethics initiative of the Football Players Health Study at Harvard University. Chris has wide ranging sports law experience and combined his experience with that of his co-authors I. Glenn Cohen and Holly Fernandez Lynch in order to produce a report suggesting recommendations to improve the health of football players. The study is wide-ranging and our discussion serves as an introduction to it. You can read the study online here or purchase a print copy at cost here.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Pat Kessock, a law student and Boston College School of Law and author of the article Out of Service: Does Service Time Manipulation Violate Major League Baseball's Collective Bargaining Agreement?, which was published in the September 2016 issue of the Boston College Law Review. Peter and Pat speak about service time manipulation in Major League Baseball and the various proposed solutions to this issue.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter speaks with Kyle Brennan, Deputy Athletic Director at the University of Utah, about his career and what it is like to work in a college athletics department. Topics covered include: how to break into working in college sports, issues that arise in the job, and the benefits that come from this work.∼ Continue Reading ∼

Hi everyone – you may have noticed that the Sports Law Biz Podcast did not put out any new episodes over the past couple of months. That’s because I have been busy with work and other obligations. But, with a new year comes more free time and a renewed dedication to releasing podcast episodes.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the recent “HGH-Gate” NFL interviews with Dan Werly. Dan is the founder and managing editor of the White Bronco, a leading sports-law blog. If you like this podcast and have not yet checked out the White Bronco, you should definitely check it out. . You can follow him on twitter at @WerlySportsLaw.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the economics of college athlete compensation with Andy Schwarz. Andy is an partner at the economic consulting firm OSKR, contributor for Vice Sports and blogger at Sportsgeekonomics. He also co-authored the article The Ninth Circuit Decision in O’Bannon and the Fallacy of Fragile Demand with Richard J. Volante, which was included in the latest edition of the Marquette Sports Law Review. You can follow him on twitter at @andyhre.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the MASN television rights fees lawsuit between the Orioles and the Nationals with Charles H. Martin. Charles is the author of Lawyerball: The Courtroom Battle of the Orioles Against the Nationals and MLB for the Future of Baseball. We discuss his book and the details and implications of this ongoing lawsuit in this episode.  You can visit his website here and follow him on twitter at @Every1sGuide.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the Second Circuit’s recent Deflategate ruling with Ian Gunn. Ian is the first repeat guest for the Sports Law Biz Podcast as well as its inaugural guest. He also is a staff writer for the Sports Esquires, where he has written extensively about Deflategate as well as other legal issues. You can find an archive of his posts on the Sports Esquires here and follow him on twitter at @IanPGunn.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the recent fan safety class action lawsuit brought against MLB with Nathaniel Grow, Associate Professor of Legal Studies at the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business. Nathaniel is also the author of the book Baseball on Trial: The Origin of Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption, a number of sports-related law review articles, and some sports-law posts on the website Fangraphs. His most recent Fangraphs post, which we discuss in this podcast episode, is entitled MLB Scores Important Victory in Fan-Safety Lawsuit. He is one of the top baseball legal analysts on the internet. You can follow him on twitter at @NathanielGrow.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the experience of hosting a sports law blog with Tony Iliakostas, the host and founder of the sports law webshow Law and Batting Order. He's also a sports law contributor for the website LawNewz. Tony is a graduate of Fordham University and an alumnus of New York Law School. He's also currently a Business Affairs Manager in the Rights Representation Group at Corbis Entertainment. You can follow Tony on twitter at @aliakostas and Law and Batting Order at @LawandBO.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses current challenges to the NCAA’s structure with Joe Nocera, an award-winning sports-business columnist for the New York Times. Joe’s most recent book, co-authored with Ben Strauss, is entitled Indentured: The Inside Story of the Rebellion Against the NCAA. In this interview, we discuss his research and opinions about problems with how the NCAA operates. You can follow Joe on twitter at @NoceraNYT.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses protections for student athletes with Brian McCullough, Assistant Professor of Sport Administration & Leadership at Settle University, where he serves as the coordinator of the new Sport Sustainability Leadership graduate specialization and certificate program. In this interview, we discuss the past, present and future of sustainability in the world of sports. You can follow Brian on twitter at @mcculloughbrian.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses protections for student athletes with Claire Zovko, an international sports lawyer. She also teaches in the International Sports Law Program at ISDE and teaches a class about the Globalization of Sport at the University of Miami. She also hosts a bi-weekly twitter chat called Sports Law Chat. In this interview, we discuss the opportunities and challenges related to careers in international sports. You can follow Claire on twitter at @clairezovko.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses protections for student athletes with Jonathan Stahler. Jonathan is an associate and certified NBPA agent at iP Agency and has written extensively about sports and entertainment issues in various forums. This discussion is based on his article published in the Spring 2014 issue of the ASU Sports and Entertainment Law Journal, entitled “Creating an Equitable Playing Field: Vital Protections for Male Athletes in Revenue-Generating Sports who are predominantly African-American.” You can follow Jonathan on twitter at @JMStahler3. Additionally, a link to his article is found here, courtesy of the ASU Sports and Entertainment Law Journal.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses morals clauses with Kelly Jones. Kelly is Senior Counsel at Under Armour, an apparel and footwear company. She has years of experience negotiating endorsement contracts (among other types of contracts) on both sides of the bargaining table, previously representing athletes and currently representing a company that  seeks athlete endorsement of its products. In this interview, she provides insight into why morals clauses exist and how these clauses operate in the “real world.” This discussion covers good contractual drafting and negotiation principles for all lawyers, including sports lawyers.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the NCAA’s transgender student-athlete policy with Elliot Rozenberg. Elliot wrote an article about the problems associated with the NCAA’s relatively new policy for transgender athletes that was published in the Spring 2015 edition of the Sports Lawyers Journal entitled “The NCAA's Transgender Student-Athlete Policy: How Attempting To Be More Inclusive Has Led to Gender and Gender-Identity Discrimination.”∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses potential ethical issues faced by lawyer-agents in the sports world with Jeff Meehan.  Jeff wrote an article about the particular challenges faced by sports agents who are also lawyers that was published in the Spring 2014 edition of the Sports Lawyers Journal entitled “Harvard or Hardball? An Examination of Ethical Issues Faced by Lawyer-Agents.” Although many sports agents have law degrees, the rules of professional conduct that lawyers are subject to potentially expose these lawyer-agents to greater liability than their peers. These are issues not commonly examined, and Jeff explores them in depth during the course of our discussion and in his article.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses his future plans for the Sports Law Podcast. The podcast is shifting to a biweekly format rather than a weekly format. This shift is necessary to make sure that the podcast is able to be released at a consistent continuous rate. Please reach out to Peter if you are interested in helping with the podcast as an intern in any capacity. Big things are ahead for the podcast and listeners are a big part of the future plan.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses the University of Virginia’s recent extension of its athletic apparel deal with Nike with David Teel, an award-winning columnist for the Daily Press, an newspaper that covers the Hampton Roads metro area of Virginia. Interestingly enough, neither Nike nor the University of Virginia seemed eager to publicize the deal much, which provides an interesting contrast to past agreements between universities and athletic apparel companies. Mr. Teel provides an interesting and informed perspective into this current deal and how these deals have evolved over time. You can follow Mr. Teel on twitter here or order his book “Press Pass: Thirty Years of Bylines, Headlines and Deadlines” here. Mr. Teel was able to learn about this detail through his reporting work.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses how discipline in sports with Bob Latham, a partner at the international law firm of Jackson Walker, LLP. Mr. Latham is also Chairman of the World Rugby Regulations Committee  and has extensive experience in developing and maintaining disciplinary processes in that capacity. Additionally, Mr. Latham has written a book entitled Winners & Losers: Rants, Riffs & Reflections on the World of Sports, which contains a series of anecdotes touching on the sports world. His wide-ranging experience in both the legal and sports worlds make him an authority on issues of sports discipline, which has been a hot topic as of late.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses how sports can be a force for good with Alicia Jessop. Ms. Jessop is an Assistant Professor at the University of Miami who has written for numerous media outlets about sports business issues. Throughout her career, she has witnessed countless examples of athletes who have made a difference in the lives of people, either through direct interaction or indirectly through a charitable organization. In a world where we often hear about the bad things that athletes do, Ms. Jessop wants to make sure that people are aware of the positive impacts that athletes can have on their communities as well.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses issues surrounding the potential introduction of an International Player Draft in Major League Baseball with Jeff Tiedeman.  Jeff wrote an article about a challenges and benefits of a proposed international draft in MLB that was published in the May 2014 edition of the Sports Lawyers Journal entitled “MLB International Player Draft: Home Run or Headache?” Jeff believes that although there are some obstacles to implementation of an international draft, having a workable draft would solve many problems in the current player acquisition system in baseball.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses issues involved in running a college athletic conference with Commissioner Bernadette McGlade of the Atlantic 10 Conference. They discuss the respective responsibilities of individual school athletic departments, athletic conferences, and the NCAA. They discuss differences between different athletic conferences across the NCAA. Commissioner McGlade speaks about how conference realignment affects the individual conferences. The discussion ends after analyzing the recent O’Bannon ruling by the 9th Circuit and what this means for the future of college sports. Commissioner McGlade has years of experience working in college sports and she brings an important perspective to this discussion.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses recent trends in stadium concession sales throughout the sports industry with Windy Dees, PhD, an associate professor at the University of Miami in the Department of Kinesiology and Sport Sciences. She’s an expert on #sportsbiz issues ranging from branding to corporate sponsorship effectiveness to event marketing strategies. In the April 2013 edition of the International Journal of Education and Research, she co-authored a study entitled “Concession Sales: The Examination of Novelty Effect and Consumer Mood,” which we used as a springboard for this discussion of concession sales trends in stadiums.  She is very active on twitter and you can follow her at @getDeestweets. I learned a lot from our conversation and I’m sure listeners to the podcast will as well.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode (the second of a two part series), Peter Ott speaks with Sports Marketing legend Sonny Vaccaro about his advocacy on behalf of college athletes. Sonny was recently the subject of an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary entitled “Sole Man.” That movie looked at the broad outline of his life, from his start in Trafford, Pennsylvania to his signing of Michael Jordan to his first Nike deal to his recent advocacy on behalf of college athletes. In this podcast, Sonny discusses what he thinks is wrong with the current NCAA system. He outlines how he thinks that college athletes are being exploited by the NCAA and its member schools and he discusses the O’Bannon lawsuit.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode (the first of a two part series), Peter Ott speaks with Sports Marketing legend Sonny Vaccaro about his career. Sonny was recently the subject of an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary entitled “Sole Man.” That movie looked at the broad outline of his life, from his start in Trafford, Pennsylvania to his signing of Michael Jordan to his first Nike deal to his recent advocacy on behalf of college athletes. This podcast starts with the assumption that listeners are already somewhat familiar with those aspects of Sonny’s life and explores some of the notable parts of Sonny’s life more in depth. This podcast brings out Sonny’s personality, as he discusses his personal and professional life and shares lessons that any #sportsbiz professional can take away from his life story.∼ Continue Reading ∼

In this episode, Peter Ott discusses Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption with UVA Law Professor Gordon Hylton. Antitrust law is designed to protect consumers from anticompetitive practices by monopolies or groups of businesses. Most sports leagues are subject to antitrust laws in some way, however, Major League Baseball has historically enjoyed an exemption from the applicability of these laws. This greatly affects the “playing field” upon which professional baseball operates. Peter and Professor Hylton discuss why this antitrust exemption exists and what are its practical effects on baseball players, owners, and fans.∼ Continue Reading ∼

Today I am proud to release the first official episode of the Sports Law Biz Podcast. This is a full length podcast episode, lasting for 34 minutes. You can listen to it here on this blog post or you can follow this link and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes. If you subscribe, this and future episodes will be downloaded directly to your computer or mobile device and you will never miss one in the future. You can also find the episode on Soundcloud, Stitcher, and Youtube.∼ Continue Reading ∼

Here is “Episode Zero” of the Sports Law Biz Podcast. This episode is simply an overview of what I envision the podcast being. It also establishes a place in the iTunes feed for the podcast. Listen to it and let me know what you think. I’d love to hear your feedback.∼ Continue Reading ∼