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Sports Law

  • OVERVIEW
  • PROFESSIONALS
The roar of the crowd, the crack of the bat, the squeak of tennis shoes on the court — it’s all music to our ears. And we love orchestrating the deals, transactions and contracts that make those sounds possible for players, owners, corporations and facilities around the country.

The noisy business of sports stretches so wide that it touches nearly every aspect of law, from collective bargaining to copyright enforcement. At each point of contact, Thompson Coburn offers highly skilled attorneys who can respond swiftly and competently to any issue and craft a comprehensive solution for the individual, corporation or municipal entity.

Our attorneys have represented individual sports agencies and players in various capacities, including crafting athletic endorsement deals, negotiating website design contracts, organizing private tax matters and preventing the unauthorized use of player images. We have extensive experience negotiating contracts for coaches and executives, and handling sports franchise issues such as stadium leases and vendor agreements.

Our attorneys also have advised financial institutions on investments related to athletes and athletic merchandise brands.

Robert E. Wallace, Jr.

314.552.6509

The firm has more than 30 years of experience in public and private financing projects related to the acquisition and construction of some of the region’s largest sports facilities. These facilities include:

  • Busch Stadium
  • Edward Jones Dome
  • Scottrade Center
  • Old Busch Stadium
  • Mizzou Arena
  • Faurot Field, the University of Missouri football stadium
  • Hammons Center, the Missouri State University basketball facility
  • Old St. Louis Arena, former arena of the St. Louis Blues
  • Rent One Park, the stadium for the Southern Illinois Miners, a minor-league baseball team in the Frontier League
  • Various secondary school facilities
     
  • Thompson Coburn served as bond counsel in connection with the 1991 $250 million bond financing by the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority issued to finance the Edward Jones Dome in downtown St. Louis and the 1993, 1997 and 2003 refundings of those bonds.