For those of you tired with the Ashes, or Wimbledon, surely not (?) take heart that the English Football League season restarts on August 5 with the Premier League kicking off the week later. Sadly one of the former Premier League teams, Leicester City will be heading for the earlier kick off, as they were relegated at the end of last season. But their problems have not ended there writes David Little, a Partner in our Corporate and Commercial department who increasingly handles Sports Law cases too.
Reported in the Guardian, Leicester City has been fined £880,000 for colluding to fix the price of replica football kits, according to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The regulator said Leicester and retailer JD Sports had admitted to anti-competitive behaviour including ‘price fixing conduct’, and both broke competition law between 2018 and 2021 with an illegal deal on clothing sales.
The companies had a deal in which JD Sports agreed not to sell Leicester kit for the 2018-19 season and then said it would apply a delivery charge to all orders of Leicester City-branded clothing in order not to undercut the club’s own online store.
I’m intrigued to learn how their fans will react to this double blow of overpaying for kit and now also playing lower tier football. The augurs are not great.
What is endlessly fascinating for a sports lawyer is just how broad the subject area is. This week it was a ruling from the CMA. In the next blog we’ll be looking at the transfer window and agents’ fees.
Contact our Sports Lawyers
David Little, is a Partner in the Corporate & Commercial team and also Head of Sports Law for the firm. If you would like to contact him please quote Ref CB406 on either 07968 027343 or 020 7631 4141 or email company@bishopandsewell.co.uk.
The above is accurate as at 07 July 2023. The information above may be subject to change.
The content of this note should not be considered legal advice and each matter should be considered on a case-by-case basis.
