Esports Lawyers

We help the entire esports sector to stay compliant and ensure fair competition.

The esports market is booming but reputational risks are high amid its rapid growth.

Esports grew out of the gaming and traditional sports industries but due to this rapid, disruptive growth the landscape is now characterised by its own commercial, regulatory and legal issues.

Publishers and developers control the game and generally own the intellectual property rights to content, characters and gameplay. Robust commercial agreements and careful consideration of licencing arrangements are important. Yet these stakeholders also operate in unfamiliar and constantly-evolving territory impacted by increased focus on governance, player safeguarding and the social and cultural demands of the gaming communities.

Cheating is becoming a real issue. Eight-figure prize pools, coupled with the growth of betting markets, has increased the scope for corruption, match- and spot-fixing as well as more advanced methods of cheating. Effective regulation and responsible governance are vital to protect the credibility, integrity and value of the industry and support its continued growth.

For players and teams, effective reputation and brand management is as lucrative as tournament wins and placings. The road to celebrity status brings its own challenges and expert legal support in intellectual property, defamation, media response and reputation crisis management can help drive teams to success while removing distractions enabling players to focus on the game.

League and tournament operators, venues, streaming platforms and broadcasters also play a vital role in the success of esports events. The challenges they face, such as broadcast and streaming rights, are similar to those in traditional sports. However, the shift to a digital setting means that cybersecurity and data protection are more important than ever.

Our expertise

We offer the expertise in sport, media and technology law that you need to achieve your goals in the diverse, constantly evolving esports sector.

We work with game developers and publishers, national governing bodies, sponsors, leagues, players and event organisers. We advise on game development, publishing and promotion, intellectual property, licensing, brand management, regulatory issues, media rights and broadcasting, as well as image rights, sponsorship, advertising, event staging, venue hire, gambling and competition regulations, data protection and cybersecurity, safeguarding, anti-doping and anti-corruption, in addition to employment and representation issues.

Meet the team

“Acting for a high number of emerging digital industry clients, including gaming companies and app developers, Brabners’ practice is well-placed to support clients in the start-up space.”

The Legal 500

“Brabners' IT practice spans a range of areas, advising on biometric tech, commodity trading software, AI, gaming, and e-commerce issues. Colin Bell leads the practice and is experienced in IT and software-related matters, including SaaS, PaaS, licensing and development agreements... he also advises tech clients on commercial contracts and data protection work.”

The Legal 500

“We were delighted with the work of Brabners’ team. Mark and Daniel were excellent, really easy to work with. We couldn’t have been in better hands.”

GasTag

“Reliability, approachability, service oriented, responsive, knowledgeable. These are the things that I think others would want to know and therefore would give me confidence in recommending.”

AppLearn