Centre Director Professor Christian Tams will be a Visiting Professor at Kobe University (Japan) in October. During his visit, Professor Tams will teach a course on public international law and deliver a lecture entitled “The Public International Law Foundations of International Sports Governance” on 10 October 2019.
Abstract
International sports law is ‘on the rise’— and not only in Japan, host to so many significant sporting events. A major societal and commercial phenomenon, global sport is subject to a fragmented body of rules and regulations. For circa two decades, this fragmented body of international sports law has commanded the attention of an increasing number of lawyers, with diverse backgrounds in contract law, private regulation, arbitration, media law, and many more.
Whilst its rise is widely recognised, international sports law is so far mostly viewed as a private, transnational project: shaped by autonomous self-governance of sports associations; reflected in the thickening jurisprudence of a private dispute settlement system organised around the CAS; and wary of state interference. In this talk, Prof. Tams seeks to shift the perspective to some degree. It will be argued that the dominant (transnational/private) perspective neglects the dependence of international sports on fairly traditional concepts of public international law. It will be suggested that familiarity with basic concepts of public international law enhances our understanding of international sports law — just as engagement with the questions of international sports can enrich public international law discourse.
For more information on the lecture please click here.
Contact for details: maritake@port.kobe-u.ac.jp
Image: Kobe University