A comparison of sports regulations on the use of wearable technology & data collection

The increasing usage of wearable technology in sport has raised many interesting regulatory and legal issues, as governing bodies and leagues scramble to adapt to the rapidly developing industry. Teams ideally want to collect as much biophysical data about their players as possible. However, players are becoming increasingly wary of allowing their personal information to be recorded and harvested, and are asking more questions about who owns the data and how it can be used (a tension reflected in the negotiations of collective bargaining agreements).

To help bring some clarity to the space, this LawInSport reference resource provides a general overview of how different sports organisations currently approach the regulation of wearable technology. Please note that, given that this is a rapidly evolving area, regulations may well change, evolve and/or be supplemented to over time. We will endeavour to keep this resource as up-to-date as possible; and please do contact us if you have any comments and/or additional information.

This article covers the regulations of the following organisations:

• Australian Football League (AFL)

• Aviva Rugby Premiership (England)

• British Horse Industry Confederation (equestrian, including dressage, jumping, and eventing)

• International Fencing Federation (FIE)

• Federation of International Basketball Federation (FIBA)

• Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)

• Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG)

• Federation International Ski (FIS)

• Federation International de Snowboarding

• Federation Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB)

• Federation International de Volleyball - Volleyball (Indoor) (FIVB)

• International Cricket Council (ICC)

• International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)

• International Olympic Committee (IOC)

• International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF)

• International Taekwon-do Federation (ITF)

• International Tennis Federation (ITF)

• International Triathlon Union

• National Basketball Association (NBA)

• National Football League (NFL)

• National Hockey League (NHL)

• Major League Basketball (MLB)

• Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)

• United States Golf Association (USGA)

• World Archery

• World Badminton Federation (WBF)

• World Curling Federation

• World Karate Federation

• World Rowing Federation, Federation Internationale des Societes d'Aviron (FISA)

• World Rugby