Episode description

Football fans' love of the game generates plenty of revenue. The major sources of income in football are merchandising, sponsoring and broadcasting rights. All of these rely on intellectual property (IP) rights. In this episode of the Trade Goals podcast, Wolf Meier-Ewert and Jana Borges cast light on how the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, also known as the TRIPS Agreement, enables players, clubs and football associations to monetize their IP through the sale of branded goods and broadcasting deals.

We talked to:

Loic Luscher, Media & Communications Manager, Servette FC, Geneva

Alex Kelham, Commercial and IP lawyer, Head of Sports Business Group at international law firm Lewis Silkin 

Víctor Umaña, CEO FIFA U20 World Cup Costa Rica.

Show notes:

View of Geneva from Mont Salève

The WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS): The TRIPS Agreement explained

WIPO reference guide: Sports and Intellectual Property

Poster with Servette FC jerseys from 1890 (in French): Shop du Servette FC

Lewis Silkin sport business homepage: Lewis Silkin - Sports Business

The relative financial performance of the highest revenue generating clubs in world football: Deloitte Football Money League 2022