The WS Sports Law Conference

The WS Sports Law Conference returns on 30 October 2025 in Edinburgh. Bringing together around 100 lawyers, athletes, sports business professional and students to discuss & debate hot legal topics in the sports industry in Scotland and internationally.

The event is supported by our Partners at Lombardi Associates and Media Partner, LawInSport.

The WS Society is a charity (over 500 years old) that helps to advance and disseminate knowledge and education in law and legal practice for public benefit. They operate a law library, run an education programme and promote high standards of expertise and professional conduct and promote equality and diversity and advance citizenship and community development. Find out more here.

Agenda:

10.30 am – 11.00 am - Registration and Networking

11.05 am – 11.50 am | Keynote Session In conversation with Sean Cottrell – reflections on a career in sports law

Sean Cottrell, Entrepreneur & Co-Founder & CEO of LawInSport
Paolo Lombardi, Managing Director, Lombardi Associates

It started as a website. Now it's LawInSport has an annual readership with 2 million annual readers, and 40,000 registered members including many of the leading sports federations, clubs, leagues, law firms, tax advisers, consultants and athletes. LawInSport didn't just fill a gap—it created a global community. Sean Cottrell will tell you how it happened, and more importantly, what comes next in 2026.

11.50 am – 12.35 pm Building a legal team inside a football club

Lloyd Thomas, General Counsel, Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club
Finlay Stark, Club Secretary, Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club

Everyone talks about Brighton. There's a reason for that. This isn't luck—it's design. Lloyd and Finlay will show you how the legal function became part of the club's DNA, not an afterthought. From transfers to governance, this is how you embed law into everything a modern club does.

12.35 pm – 12.50 pm | Charity Partner Street Soccer Scotland

Gerry Britton, Chief Operating Officer, Street Soccer Scotland

Football changes lives. Street Soccer proves it. Fresh from Oslo and the Homeless World Cup, Gerry will share what happens when you use sport as the vehicle for transformation, not just entertainment.

1.50 pm – 2.50 pm ITIA v Jannik Sinner – reflections on anti-doping matters

Dr David Sharpe KC, 12KBW & Arbitrator
Tammi Gaw, Advantage Rule LLC & Arbitrator

The Sinner case mattered. The world was watching. Two of the three arbitrators who heard it will tell you what went into the decision. Not the spin. Not the headlines. The facts, the pressure, and what it means for how we protect athletes going forward.

2.50 pm – 3.35 pm Life after sport – the role of the trusted adviser

Craig Joiner, Partner, LGT Wealth Management & Former Professional and International Rugby Union Player
John Colquhoun, Former Scottish international footballer (Celtic, Hearts, Sunderland), Football Advisor & Co-owner, GEM Golf Swing Aid
Patrick Kelly, Trainee Solicitor, Shepherd and Wedderburn & Former Professional Rugby Player

The whistle blows. Then what? Three people who've lived it—on the pitch and in the office—will tell you what athletes actually need when the game ends. And how the smartest advisers (and employers) are paying attention.

4.00 pm – 4.50 pm From Lions tour to Glasgow 2026: Preparing for Sports Biggest Moments

Gill Treasurer, Director of Legal and Governance, The British and Irish Lions & Non-Exec Director, sportscotland
Angela McCracken, Head of Legal, Commonwealth Games 2026 & Head of Legal & Governance, Scottish Rugby

The Lions just won in Australia. Glasgow hosts the Commonwealth Games next year. Behind every triumph, behind every opening ceremony, there's a legal and governance team making it possible.