Esade Law School champions innovation in the law profession with a new Master in International Sports Law Practice
Esade Law School is launching a new Master in International Sports Law Practice in 2021-2022. Students who take the University Master for Access to the Legal Profession too, will earn a double qualification that equips them to work as sports lawyers and legal advisors to sports entities and sportspeople.
The innovative teaching methods and varied, hands-on content will give students an in-depth knowledge of subjects such as the legal framework of sport, contracts for sportspeople, footballer transfers, applicable regulations, practical considerations of sports law, club management and the creation of supranational entities.
This new master now available at Esade, which also teaches a Professional Certificate in Legal Tech in conjunction with MIT, consolidates the commitment to innovation by enabling law firms to implement the digital change needed in the legal profession, adapting to industry trends and the paradigm shift being caused by the onset of new technologies.
The new Master in International Sports Law Practice at Esade Law School will be directed by Juan de Dios Crespo Pérez, one of the foremost experts in international sports with an extensive career as the lawyer of different national and international clubs and prestigious sportspeople around the globe. Sergio Llebaría, the academic director of the programme, explains that “this new qualification aims to train future generations in one of the most sought-after careers making an enormous impact on society and the world of sport, a career that needs professionals with a multidisciplinary approach, a global outlook and a huge capacity to incorporate new technologies into the legal profession”.
Immersion in foremost international sports federations
This programme, to be taught in English, marks another step forwards in the globalisation of Esade Law School, which strives to cater for the increasingly global needs of the legal profession. Students will learn about comparative sports law and how the foremost international institutions in Asia, America and Europe operate, with particular emphasis on Switzerland, where the headquarters of many sports federations are situated.
One mainstay of the master is its faculty which includes globally acclaimed professors and professionals from prestigious football clubs, major international sports federations and law firms specialised in sports law, plus experts in sports transfers familiar with the specific knowledge needed in this industry. "This cast of leaders is what this master aims to bring together for the first time in an academic and practical programme”, said Crespo.
Focus on practice and new technologies
What makes this programme different is its eminently practical approach. In addition to receiving an intellectual framework, students also acquire an in-depth vision of real-life factors that teach them how to negotiate, litigate and mediate: abilities of crucial importance in their professional career.
The programme therefore features a range of subjects that examine matters such as the management of a sports club from the viewpoint of general management, sports management and legal management, thereby providing an overall, practical understanding of the subject; taxation in sport; the regulations and practical considerations of disciplinary procedures; and e-sports, to name but a few.
The programme also aims to teach students how to adapt to the paradigm shift being brought about in the legal professional by the onset of new technologies. In this respect, subjects will include Legal Tech and innovation and management which will help students understand the way in which the most innovative instruments work and how they can use them to leverage change in business law and the corporate world.
