Sports Industry

McAfee & Taft’s Sports Industry Group lawyers represent professional sports franchises, owners and investors, sports organizations and associations, amateur associations and bodies, promoters and sponsors in a broad range of legal areas.  In recent years particularly, the firm has played a key behind-the-scenes role in bringing a number of professional sports teams and high-profile events to our region.

As part of our multi-disciplinary practice, our lawyers regularly counsel and represent clients in matters involving:

  • Buying and selling sports teams
  • Negotiating franchise affiliations/license agreements with professional sports leagues
  • Mergers, acquisitions and divestitures
  • Financing
  • Arena leases and licenses
  • Facility acquisitions and renovations
  • Venue naming rights
  • Concession and vendor contracts
  • Premium seating license agreements
  • Economic incentives with municipalities
  • Parking agreements
  • Media rights
  • Sponsorships
  • Branding, marketing and advertising
  • Licensing agreements
  • Business disputes
  • Entity formation
  • Labor and employment
  • Employee benefits and executive compensation, including contracts for coaches and other personnel
  • Real estate, construction and development
  • Tax related issues

Representative Sports Industry Experience

  • Ongoing representation of The Professional Basketball Club, LLC, the owner of the Oklahoma City Thunder NBA franchise, on an ongoing basis in all aspects of its business, including:
    • Acquisition and subsequent relocation of the National Basketball Association franchise (formerly the Seattle SuperSonics) to Oklahoma City.
    • Negotiation of an arena license agreement with the City of Oklahoma City, including an agreement to substantially renovate the Ford Center to meet team needs and National Basketball Association standards.
    • Negotiation of a broad range of concession, vendor, sponsorship and licensing agreements
    • Acquisition and renovation of the team’s temporary practice facility and related matters.
    • Trademark clearance and transfer of trademark assignments
    • Counseling team management in employment and employee benefits matters.
  • Representation of The Professional Basketball Club, LLC in its acquisition of the Tulsa 66ers, an NBA Development League franchise exclusively affiliated with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
  • Representation of Tulsa Pro Hoops, LLC, owners of the Tulsa Shock WNBA basketball team, in general business and contractual matters, including the negotiation of the license agreement and related agreements with the WNBA and the negotiation of an arena license agreement with the BOK Center in Tulsa, OK.
  • Representation of the National Basketball Association in transactions related to the temporary relocation of the New Orleans Hornets franchise to Oklahoma City following Hurricane Katrina.  These transactions included agreements for the use of the Ford Center in Oklahoma City for the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 NBA seasons and agreements with the City of Oklahoma City regarding certain incentives provided to the Hornets in connection with the relocation. 
  • Representation of Prodigal Hockey LLC, owners of an American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate hockey team based in Oklahoma City, OK, in general business and contractual matters, including affiliate agreement negotiations with the Edmonton Oilers and the AHL and arena license agreement negotiations with the Cox Center.
  • Representation of the Oklahoma City Blazers hockey team and Oklahoma RedHawks baseball team in general business matters, including the negotiation of multi-year arena leases with Oklahoma City and concession services contracts with national vendors.
  • Representation of the Oklahoma RedHawks in ongoing business and contractual matters, including naming rights and sponsorship agreements.
  • Representation of an arena football team in the negotiation and signing of an arena license agreement.