Sports & Entertainment: Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Overview

Our sports & entertainment service team is comprised of highly skilled professionals with extensive experience in advising clients on the unique legal issues facing businesses, teams, and investors in the sports and entertainment markets. We advise professional and amateur sports teams, sports businesses, venues and sports facilities, investors, athletes, youth sports organizations, university and school athletic departments, athletic associations, professional sports league licensees, musical artists, movie and TV show directors and producers, entertainment companies, and other businesses operating in the sports and entertainment industries.

Areas of Focus

Business Representation & Transactions: We assist sports organizations and investors with a wide array of commercial transactions, including sports industry investments, mergers, and acquisitions; professional sports ownership transactions, including controlling and non-controlling team acquisitions; venue naming rights and other sponsorship agreements; media rights agreements; corporate governance and structuring; venue rental and license agreements; and other commercial, sponsorship, and license agreements.
Intellectual Property, NIL & Technology: We advise clients in trademark and brand protection; sponsorship and endorsement agreements; digital media and content distribution; content creation agreements; talent agreements, licensing, endorsement and publishing rights; agreements related to professional and amateur athletes’ name, image, and likeness; promotions and contests; and technology and software licensing.
Finance: We represent sports organizations and other market participants in sports-related financial transactions, including stadium and team financings and public finance bond issues.
Data Privacy & Cybersecurity: We provide a full range of privacy and cybersecurity services, including regulatory compliance, data incident response and planning, risk assessment and management, and data processing agreement drafting and negotiation.
Labor & Employment: Our attorneys negotiate player, coach, key executive and other industry professionals’ contracts and executive compensation packages; advise on salary cap issues, collective bargaining compliance; local, state, and federal compliance with hiring, pay, wage and hour, and other labor and employment-related laws, obligations, and requirements; counsel clients on employment-related policies, handbooks, rules, and regulations; and represent clients in arbitrations, litigation, administrative hearings, and other court appearances.
Litigation: We represent clients in arbitrations, investigations, TCPA matters, and other sports-related litigation.
Real Estate: We have extensive experience in the real estate matters that impact the development of sports, entertainment, and tourism venues, including availability of and access to public financing, industrial revenue bonds and TIF incentives, zoning and project entitlements; multiple parcel acquisitions and consolidations; utility relocations and extensions; property covenants, easements and restrictions; governmental processes involved in street vacations/sales; and construction and financing documentation.
Private Client Services: Our attorneys provide counsel in estate and tax planning for athletes, coaches, executives, and owners, and domestic relations matters for athletes, coaches, and executives, including prenuptial agreements, termination of marriage, child support, and paternity cases.

Experience

Serving as primary outside counsel to FC Cincinnati and providing regular counsel on legal matters such as material sponsorship agreements, naming rights transactions, international academy expansion, real estate development, employment matters related to executives, players, and coaches, tax considerations, public and private financing, and Major League Soccer matters.
Represented FC Cincinnati in connection with the acquisition, financing, ownership, and expansion into Major League Soccer (MLS) team, including providing counsel related to:

Structuring and entity formation;
Negotiation of the MLS expansion agreement;
Financing of TQL Stadium and the Mercy Health Training Facility;
Sponsorship agreements, including a kit sponsorship agreement, stadium and training facility naming rights agreements, and numerous other multi-year, multi-million dollar stadium and team sponsorship agreements;
Stadium and training facility concessionaire agreements;
Local television, radio and streaming rights agreements;
Exclusive ticketing agreements; and
Employment and independent contractor agreements with coaches, scouts, eMLS players, and other front office employees.

Serving as primary outside counsel for a premier motorsports sanctioning body.
Served as counsel for the NWSL Cincinnati Expansion Bid.
Served as counsel to the acquirer of the Cincinnati ATP Tournament and real property assets, and arranged and closed a public financing transaction with the City of Mason and Warren County Port Authority for construction and expansion of the Lindner Tennis Center facilities.
Represented a major league professional sports team on structuring and documenting a significant internal restructuring.
Represented a premier sports business in connection with long-term license and collaboration agreements with the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, numerous professional sports teams, and multiple high profile athletes.
Represented a premier amateur sports school in various commercial agreements, including multi-year sponsorship agreements, and an exclusive outfitter and apparel agreement with a global sportswear brand.
Represent Kings Hammer Soccer Club in a variety of matters including tournament agreements, facility leases, club acquisitions, and labor and employment matters.

Served as counsel to a sports experiences business in multi-year sponsorship agreements with national and international companies, supply agreements, lease agreements, youth protection and safeguarding matters, and general commercial matters.

Represented the Ohio High School Athletic Association in Roger Bacon High School, et al. v. Ohio High School Athletic Association, Case No. A 18 04426 (Hamilton Cty, Ohio).
Represented public and private companies in negotiating multi-year exclusive sponsorship agreements with professional sports teams and major university athletics departments.
Advised minority owners in non-controlling investments with professional sports teams.
Represented a University of Cincinnati men's basketball player in appealing the NCAA's denial of eligibility, resulting in the transfer athlete being cleared to play.

Counsel to a leading path-to-college solutions-based digital network for high school and college student athletes, parents, coaches, and administrators in a variety of matters including acquisition of a sports-based analytics company and sponsorship and other commercial agreements with youth sports clubs, associations and service providers.

Counsel to a sports technology and media platform in connection with programming and content distribution agreements with multiple professional sports leagues, including the MLB and NBA.
Represented independent record label in negotiation of pressing and distribution agreement.
Represented numerous musical artists in connection with publishing, songwriting, and licensing agreement.
Represented a musical group in connection with negotiating talent and production agreements for a television show pilot and digital series.
Experience representing musical artists’ in reclaiming unpaid royalties from digital distribution of songs.