SPORTS LAW
Sports law is a relatively new and rarely explored topic in Mexican law, as José Ramón Trigueros and Sadara Montenegro González report.
Sports law may be relatively new in Mexico, but legal controversies, doping issues and even electoral disputes are providing the few sports law experts in the country with a ripe field for professional development.
In the last decade, Mexican sports federations, authorities, clubs and professional athletes from less popular sports have slowly—and on several occasions, painfully—recognised the need for sports law experts to represent and protect their interests. Recent stories of success in sports such as rowing or cycling have pushed the respective sports federations to seek professional assistance to cope with the new legal responsibilities arising from slightly bigger state funds and enhanced scrutiny from athletes, the public and international sports authorities.
In a country of 112 million inhabitants eager for stories of sports heroes, success in sports other than soccer has been quite unusual, exposing the athletes and their sports federations to a wider audience, and to legal issues for which most federations are not yet fully prepared.
Massive public exposure attracts the attention of companies from every field of industry, interested in associating their brands and products with the inherent values of the sport, the federation and the struggle and effort of the athlete to reach his or her goals.
Intellectual property is not a familiar topic to athletes, sports federations or associations in Mexico. More oſt en than not, organisations’ budgets are stretched thin to meet the needs of their competitors, specialised staff , facilities, travel accommodation and miscellaneous expenses, leaving other ‘non-essentials’ out of the equation. It is fairly common to fi nd sports federations whose trademark is not yet registered before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property, not to mention their major events and competitions.
Nonetheless, sports federations, associations, clubs and athletes alike are beginning to acknowledge the true potential of their IP and are taking important steps towards generating value through licensing, sponsoring and telecommunication deals.
Likewise, major sportswear and equipment suppliers are turning their attention to a wide range of sports that have hitherto been neglected by the public. Aſt er
www.worldipreview.com
all, with a huge market available for business, major sporting events taking place in Mexico and successful athletes developing into top Pan-American and, possibly, Olympic contenders, several companies are seeking to make the most of the opportunity.
As a consequence, Mexico has experienced a surge in athletic apparel and sporting goods bearing the trademarks for diff erent sports federations. T e negotiation of sponsorship deals for sports events is becoming widespread for less mainstream sports, even those that do not have a federation to represent them, such as paintball.
major events and racing competitions to promote cycling in Mexico and to select state representatives for national competitions.
Every event or race has to be sanctioned by the Mexican Cycling Federation which, in turn, may off er fi nancial support and, in all cases, technical assistance. However, it is up to the association or the interested third party to organise and cover all expenses related to the event. In most cases, the expenditures are covered by the association, the federation and the support of donors or eventual sponsors (usually without a written agreement).
“LOOKING FOR
ADDITIONAL REVENUE SOURCES AND MEANS TO GENERATE VALUE FROM EVENTS, ASSOCIATIONS, CLUBS AND ATHLETES, THE MEXICAN CYCLING FEDERATION HAS RECENTLY APPLIED FOR TRADEMARK REGISTRATION.”
T e case of the Mexican Cycling Federation illustrates that the management of Mexican sports federations are beginning to take serious steps towards protecting their IP assets and are actively seeking to generate additional value and revenue.
Keeping the wheels spinning
Mexico has a long tradition in cycling. T e Mexican Cycling Federation comprises cycling associations from almost every state of the country, as well as associations from universities and other institutions. T e sport is widespread among people of all ages and social backgrounds; every association and some third parties hold
National events are the responsibility of the federation, which by law has the obligation to promote and assist in the development of its discipline in Mexico. As a consequence, the federation has to take care of everything from food, lodging, government permits and rental of adequate facilities, referees, technical and administrative staff and prizes.
Looking for additional revenue sources and means to generate value from events, associations, clubs and athletes, the Mexican Cycling Federation has recently applied for trademark registration. In 2012, the goal is to reach sponsorship deals for all the major national events of the season, as well as licensing agreements with sportswear and equipment suppliers.
While we cannot deny that the generation of value from IP assets in Mexico is a common practice for mainstream sports such as football, baseball, car racing and some others, the majority of sports are just beginning to develop their potential.
T e Mexican Cycling Federation is aiming to implement IP protection policies to its members, helping them to develop their trademarks and generating revenue to cover their expenses. T e rationale is simple: strong trademarks and events will gather larger audiences, which in turn will appeal to both athletes and sponsors to make even bigger events with better organisation, competitors, facilities and staff , generating additional revenue for future projects and growth.
As a consequence, the federation is carefully analysing, from a commercial standpoint, the impact of its major events and races, developing in the process strong trademarks
World Intellectual Property Review March/April 2012 41
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76