Who Owns the Data Behind the Beautiful Game?, Law360

Partners Manita Rawat, Lindsay Allen, and Michael Ryan and associates Theodore Rand and Kevin Tsao co-authored an Expert Analysis for Law360 examining the complex legal questions surrounding ownership, governance, and commercialization of the vast amounts of data generated by modern professional soccer, particularly in the context of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The authors explore how rights in sports data are shaped by a combination of intellectual property, contractual, privacy, biometric, antitrust, and emerging AI laws rather than traditional concepts of ownership. They discuss the legal implications of wearable technologies, AI-driven scouting and analytics, biometric data collection, and the growing commercial value of match data, highlighting the importance of clear contractual frameworks and robust data governance as organizations seek to maximize the value of sports data while managing evolving regulatory and legal risks.

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