In our Autumn 2007 e-bulletin we wrote about the news access row which briefly threatened to engulf the Rugby World Cup and cricket has recently demonstrated that it is not immune from similar vicissitudes. Coverage of the test series between Australia and Sri Lanka in November was delayed after a stand-off between Cricket Australia on the one side and a News Corporation subsidiary and an agglomeration of press agencies (Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France Presse and Getty Images) on the other.

Organisers of forthcoming major sporting events including the 2011 IRB Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Russia will benefit from newly created anti-ambush marketing laws.

The World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA) has held the third World Conference on Doping in Sport, where stakeholders were asked to provide input on the final draft 3.0 of the World Anti-Doping Code. Once finalised, the Code shall be circulated in 2008 and shall take effect from 1 January 2009.

A Munich court has ruled in favour of UEFA prohibiting an unauthorised sports hospitality package business from offering match tickets or hospitality packages containing match tickets for the 2008 UEFA European Championships in Austria and Switzerland.

In one of several legal developments in our round-up of the 2007 IRB Rugby World Cup, Heineken, an official sponsor of the tournament, is in the process of appealing against the decision of the Paris High Court that its advertising campaign contravenes the French 1991 Loi Evin, which prohibits the advertising of alcohol with sporting events.

FIFA has instructed a firm of South African lawyers to commence intellectual property proceedings against various local businesses which it believes are infringing its trade mark and design rights relating to the FIFA 2010 Word Cup.

FIFA and UEFA have challenged the European Commission's decision to approve the proposed listed events of several European countries. The Television Without Frontiers Directive permits such countries to compile a list of sporting events commonly known as "Listed Events" that must be shown on free-to-air television on the grounds that they are in the public interest. However, football's European and world sports governing bodies have called into question whether the current approved lists disproportionately interfere with the market for television rights.

As reported in our Autumn 2007 e-bulletin, the European Commission's White Paper on Sport, intended to provide strategic orientation on the role of sport in the EU, was finally published on 11 July 2007. Initially, a number of sports governing bodies labelled the White Paper as a "missed opportunity" and criticised it for only paying lip service to the concept of the specificity of sport and for failing to accord such concept a more concrete expression under EU law.

Contrary to the appeals of Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini for the introduction of quotas to protect the number of native players appearing in each country's domestic league, following a landmark decision by the Spanish Football Federation, African players may now be free to play throughout the European Union.

As reported in the Autumn 2007 edition of our e-bulletin, the premiers of sixteen federal states in Germany met in December 2006 to agree on proposed new legislation that would effectively outlaw all online gambling in order to protect the betting monopoly of Oddset (the state-betting organisation) despite threats of action from the European Commission in respect of the possible implications of such legislation on cross-border services.

As reported in previous e-bulletins, Premier Rugby and the RFU had been in dispute about the release of elite club players for England training days and international matches. Now, however, an agreement has been reached under which Guinness Premiership clubs will release players selected to play for England during the autumn home tests and the RBS 6 Nations, in return for substantial compensation payments.

The Tongan international Epi Taione, who featured in all four of Tonga's World Cup pool matches, changed his name by deed poll to "Paddy Power" for the duration of the tournament to raise funds for the cash-strapped Tonga team through sponsorship from the Irish bookmaker of the same name, bringing a whole new meaning to the concept of title sponsorship.

Bob and Anil recently completed negotiations for the PGA European Tour's newly established Race to Dubai and end of season tournament (which will offer the largest prize fund in world golf) which are to be funded by Leisurecorp LLC (the Emirates-based property development conglomerate).

Ben and Paul advised International Sportsworld Communicators Limited on its marketing arrangements with Pirelli Tyres in relation to the FIA World Rally Championship.

Bob advised Diageo on the extension of its Johnnie Walker branded sponsorship of the McLaren Formula One team.

Bob advised a bidder for a Tier 2 sponsorship of the London 2012 Olympic Games in relation to its invitation to tender.

Bob, Ben and Anil have been advising Diageo on a series of Guinness branded broadcast sponsorship agreements with various African television broadcasters relating to the transmission of programmes featuring football matches from the English Premiership throughout Africa.

Ben continues to advise the Ladies European Tour on the arrangements for the golf tournaments which will form its 2008 schedule.

Bob and Anil have also been advising Diageo on its Guinness branded sponsorship of the African Cup of Nations which will start later this month.