Sports, talent and entertainment

Advised an Italian Olympic gold medallist with sponsorships and tax aspects regarding their new status of worldwide known sportsperson after their unpredictable win at the latest Olympic Games. The firm has provided assistance to this client for a long time with current affairs. Lately, we have advised them to establish their presence and income through sponsorships and by building their own brand.

Advised on domestic and international transfer of several footballers, the most recent ones being: Brahim Díaz extending his contract with AC Milan for two more seasons, defender Omar Richards with his transfer to FC Bayern Munich, Rodrigo Muniz’s transfer to Fulham FC, Sydney Van Hooijdonk to Bologna FC, MLS Philadelphia Union midfielder Jack de Vries loan to Venezia FC and Brandon Soppy transfer from Rennes to Udinese FC.

Advised on domestic and international transfer of several footballers, the most recent ones being: Brahim Díaz extending his contract with AC Milan for two more seasons, defender Omar Richards with his transfer to FC Bayern Munich, Rodrigo Muniz’s transfer to Fulham FC, Sydney Van Hooijdonk to Bologna FC, MLS Philadelphia Union midfielder Jack de Vries loan to Venezia FC and Brandon Soppy transfer from Rennes to Udinese FC.

Assisted the international talent agency Wasserman with the transfer of Chelsea FC striker Tammy Abraham to AS Roma. The deal is worth £34 million, including a £68 million buy-back clause for Chelsea which can only be triggered after the player has completed two seasons with Roma.

Assisted international Wasserman Media group in relation to: 3 international transfers (Weston McKennie from Schalke to Juventus, Aké from Marseille to Juventus, and Montassar Talbi to Benevento as a free agent) and negotiation and conclusion of a secondment agreement with an Italian media & communication group.

Advised on transfers of coaches and managing directors, including: Maurizio Sarri and Massimo Rastelli as new head coaches for Lazio and Pordedone, respectively, as well as former Juventus FC managing director Fabio Paratici with his employment with Premier League team Tottenham Hotspurs FC.

Represented International Table Tennis Federation ("ITTF") in relation to investigations of the conduct of the previous President of ITTF and current Honorary President during his terms of office.

Representing a global sports marketing agency in compiling a master employment contract template for its Hong Kong office. 

Novak Djokovic the current Roland Garros and Australian Open champion and world number two, on the negotiation of his new sponsorship agreement with sportswear group Lacoste. The agreement follows on from a sponsorship relationship with the Uniqlo brand which commenced in 2012.

We are advising V8 team owners in relation to the sale of a majority stake in V8 Supercars to private equity.

Represented a national basketball team in defending federal claims. The case successfully resolved with full dismissal of claims against the team.

AC Milan, an Italian Serie A football club, on the sponsorship by Emirates airline, which included the San Siro stadium and the Milanello sporting complex.

Investors on the purchase of Queens Park Rangers FC, an English football club and subsequent investment by the Mittal Group as well as advising on successive rounds of equity and debt financing.

Andrea Pirlo on his transfer from Juventus FC to New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Andrea is regarded as one of the greatest ever midfielders in football and has been a key player in winning World Cup, Champions League and Serie A teams.

İlkay Gündoğan on his transfer to English Premier League team Manchester City FC. Midfielder Gündoğan moved from German Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund and also plays for the German national team.

Manolo Gabbiadini on his £17 million transfer to English Premier League team Southampton FC. Manolo moved to the UK club from Serie A club SSC Napoli and also plays for the Italian national team.

Roberto Donadoni and his assistant coaches for their contract extensions with the Serie A club Bologna F.C. Withers are proud to have advised on the extension of the new employment agreements.

The Youth Olympic Games in Singapore as the official legal services sponsor, which covered a range of issues concerning the organisation and hosting of the games.

Wojciech Szczesny's on his £10 million move to Italian champions Juventus. The Polish international has made the move after 132 appearances for Arsenal FC having spent eight years at the club, and the last two seasons on loan at AS Roma.

World Sports Group, Asia’s largest sports marketing, media and event management company, in relation to disputes pertaining to an agreement relating to the exploitation of commercial rights.

Advising the League on the restructuring of its constitution and participation agreements and on its contract with a broadcaster.

Assisting the International Table Tennis Federation with the establishment and operation of its marketing and Asia Pacific HQ in Singapore and continuing to provide ongoing advice on commercial and compliance matters.

Advising the Ultimate Fighting Championship (an American mixed martial arts promotion company) on compliance related matters for the staging of its first event in Singapore.

Advising World Wrestling Entertainment in relation to commercial media activity including the application of the television broadcast rules in Singapore.

Developing a framework agreement and call-off-contract documents in respect of three procurement exercises undertaken on behalf of the Football Foundation, UK's largest sports charity, and related parties.

Developing a framework agreement and call-off-contract documents for Sport England's specialist design consultancy panel.

Our London, Milan, Hong Kong and Singapore teams assisted Renault Group on the acquisition of Lotus F1 and its €1.5 billion investment in motorsport and technology. Renault extricated itself from engine supply agreements with F1 teams Red Bull and Toro Rosso, before embarking on the Lotus deal. The process took over nine months and involved staving off Lotus's multiple creditors, who were intent on putting the group into administration thereby saving Lotus's 512 skilled workforce from redundancy. Our corporate and insolvency teams achieved the unprecedented feat of adjourning four consecutive winding up petitions in court over the course of six months. This process added intense pressure to the deal, which was already complicated by the multi-party negotiations involving Mr Bernie Ecclestone, CVC, FIA, principal sponsors of Lotus, incoming and outgoing drivers of Lotus F1 as well as the outgoing minority shareholder of Lotus F1.

We are acting for a number of figures in the international football industry in relation to a Code of Practice 8 (COP 8) investigation. Our clients were missold investment schemes that amounted to tax avoidance, and we are dealing with HMRC on their behalf and negotiating a settlement with their negligent advisers.

Withers has a strong track record in representing high-profile and high-net-worth figures in the world of sport. When leading football manager Jürgen Klopp was approached by Liverpool Football Club to become its manager, we represented him in the negotiations for his move and the extension to his contract.

Renault Group is a French automobile manufacturer with long history in motorsport. When Renault was interested in the purchase of a controlling stake in Lotus F1 Team Ltd, Renault Group and Gravity Motorsports S.a.r.l. came to Withers for advice on the acquisition.