Few things are more ubiquitous in sports than informing an official—sometimes politely but, more often than not, rather impolitely—that they made an incorrect call.  Officials no doubt anticipate this hostility and tune it out while on the field.  What they likely do not anticipate, however, is being haled into a deposition months after the game ended to be questioned under oath about a call made on the field.  Yet this is the exact situation currently…

As recently mentioned on Sports Shorts, the spotlight on the gender pay gap has been amplified following the fourth World Cup win by the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team (“WNT”).  In this post, we provide a brief summary of the recent class action lawsuit filed by members of the WNT against the United States Soccer Federation (“USSF”). With the U.S. District Court as Goalie, Will the WNT Score Equal Pay? On Friday, March 8, 2019…

The gender pay gap debate continues in business as it has for a number of years. Confusion surrounding the topic remains widespread with many conflating it with equal pay and others denying its existence entirely.  Companies in the UK are now publishing their latest gender pay gap figures and the data reveals that men are typically paid more than women in most UK businesses. But what are the implications in sport?  It is no secret…

The NBA has announced that it will introduce a new rule in the upcoming NBA summer leagues. If successful, the rule could be implemented next season in the NBA. The NBA anticipates “the rule will be in effect in the NBA next season as a one-year pilot program”.…

World Rugby has abandoned its plans to launch a new Nations Championship competition after failing to get the necessary support for the project. World Rugby required unanimous backing from the ten nations who comprise the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship by 19 June 2019, however this was never achieved. Sports Shorts previously discussed the pros and cons of the proposal, but it appears that the concerns of some nations have collapsed the…

On 1 May 2019, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (“CAS”) delivered its ruling in the requests for arbitration by Caster Semenya and Athletics South Africa (“ASA”) against the International Association of Athletics Federation (the “IAAF”). CAS dismissed the requests, upholding the validity of the new IAAF Eligibility Regulations for Female Classification (Athletes with Differences of Sex Development) (the “Regulations”), which require 46 XY chromosome female athletes with differences in sex development (“DSD”) to reduce…

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has renewed his call for a luxury tax system in football. Sports Shorts previously covered the role luxury tax has played in the NBA and the extent to which this could be applied in the game of football in Europe, following similar comments by Ceferin in 2017. In summary, a luxury tax system would involve the imposition of a cap on the amounts that teams can spend on player salaries (and…