How you learn

All our courses are designed around a set of key principles based on engaging you with the world, collaborating with others, challenging you to think in new ways, and providing you with a supportive environment in which you can thrive. 

This course gives you the skills, knowledge and confidence to be able to effectively advise and represent clients in complex sport-related disputes. You’ll gain expertise in the practice and procedure before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), FIFA's  Football Tribunal, the National Anti-Doping Panel in the UK and other disciplinary courts and tribunals.

You’ll experience a high quality, supportive and intensive learning environment. The overall approach emphasises knowledge and understanding in policy, procedure and practice in sports law, while enhancing your intellectual and employability skills to postgraduate level.  

You learn through:

• Lectures  
• Guided reading  
• Seminars 
• Peer support and reflection 
• Workshops  
• Student presentations 
• Independent learning  
• Reflection and evaluation 

Course topics 

You’ll explore core topics including commercial regulation and contractual obligations in sport,, sport finance, and international sport marketing and sponsorship. You’ll also gain experience while completing a business consultancy project (via business consultancy or dissertation). 

In addition to these core topics, you’ll have the opportunity to shape your learning journey by selecting elective topics – from anti-doping law to football law. This tailored approach means you can focus on specific areas within the sports industry that match your career objectives and personal interests.

You’ll benefit from small group teaching and one-to-one support, developing peer-supported investigative and analytical approaches to the issues you explore. In groups you’ll produce research reports and draft legal documents for the preparation of litigation.  

The course also provides opportunities for formative assessment and feedback – a key method for the clinical nature of the course, providing the vocational and employability skills you’ll need in the industry. 

Course support

You’ll be supported in your learning journey towards highly skilled, graduate level employment through several key areas. These include:

• Access to our unique student support triangle to help with your personal, academic and career development.
• Access to our Skills Centre with one to ones, webinars and online resources, where you can get help with planning and structuring your assignments.
• Industry-specific employability activities such as live projects, learning in simulated environments and networking opportunities.

Course leaders and tutors

Dr Gregory Ioannidis

Course Leader

I am a sports lawyer with expertise in anti-doping litigation. I joined Sheffield Hallam University in 2014 as a senior lecturer in law.

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Applied learning

The course places a special emphasis on the development of professional and transferable key skills, preparing you for future employment. 

Networking opportunities

The course is designed in a manner which creates unique and unparalleled expertise in the practice of sports law. The eminent sports lawyers teaching on the course – and the strong professional links of the course with major stakeholders in the field – create unique employment opportunities for the students (for example, placements in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games). 

Work placements

With several placement opportunities, students can transfer their knowledge, skills and expertise immediately into a professional setting. 

These may include internships and shadowing opportunities (at home and abroad, including the UK, USA, South Africa, Switzerland, Germany, Greece and in countries that organise the Olympic Games) with anti-doping agencies, sport governing bodies, agents’ firms, football clubs, basketball clubs, and others. 

Previous students have secured placements with prestigious organisations such as the Olympics Pro Bono Legal Team, Law Offices of Howard Jacobs and ProSport International.

The course offers:

• Development of both work-based and work-related learning modules in conjunction with industry partners 
• The development of simulation modules that draw out high level employability skills within a safe environment  
• The use of employability mentors for graduate students  
• The utilisation of a wider range of staff who can embed employability skills into the curriculum.

More specifically, the underpinning rationale for this course is to prepare students for work in the field of sports law and associated careers. The purpose of this focus is to help students to develop transferable attributes that aid their career development in other arenas. The applied and clinical nature of this course means that students will be working with practitioners from the field of sports law throughout their period of study. This includes  

• Teaching input from sports law practitioners. 
• Monitoring and review of case studies.
• Active engagement with live and simulated cases.
• Placement, internship, shadowing, and networking opportunities.

Future careers

This course prepares you for a career in: 

• Anti-doping law 
• Football law 
• Sport governance
• Sport administration
• Sport agency and consultancy (in marketing and practice in law)
• Sports law 

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to work for: 

• Barnsley FC
• Celtic FC
• Manchester City FC
• Nottingham Forest FC
• The Football Association
• Prosport International (South Africa)
• The FA (Football Association)
• UK Anti-Doping
• UK Golf
• The Olympic Games
• Harry Drury Solicitors (UK), 
• Highbridge Law Firm (Denmark)
• Sports Law Expert (UK and USA)

Where will I study?

You study this course online from any location

Entry requirements

Fees and funding

• Home students
• International students

Home students

Our tuition fee for UK students starting distance learning study in 2024/25 is £10,310 for the course. The tuition fee displayed above is for the full course. If the full course is more than one year in duration, the fee will be divided into annual payments which will then be rounded. This may mean the total fee you pay is slightly higher than the fee stated above. If you take a break in study or have to re-take part of the course, you may also be charged an additional fee and will be notified of this at the time. Our tuition fee for UK students starting part-time study in 2024/25 is £5,155 per year.

If you are studying an undergraduate course, postgraduate pre-registration course or postgraduate research course over more than one academic year then your tuition fees may increase in subsequent years in line with Government regulations or UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) published fees. More information can be found in our terms and conditions under student fees regulations.

International students

Our tuition fee for International/EU students starting distance learning study in 2024/25 is £9,700 for the course. The tuition fee displayed above is for the full course. If the full course is more than one year in duration, the fee will be divided into annual payments which will then be rounded. This may mean the total fee you pay is slightly higher than the fee stated above. If you take a break in study or have to re-take part of the course, you may also be charged an additional fee and will be notified of this at the time. Our tuition fee for International/EU students starting part-time study in 2024/25 is £4,850 per year.

Postgraduate student loans

Up to £11,222 available for Home students on most masters courses.

Learn more

Additional course costs

This link allows you to view estimated costs associated with the main activities on specific courses. These are estimates and, as such, are only an indication of additional course costs. Actual costs can vary greatly depending on the choices you make during your course.

Additional costs for Law courses (PDF, 261KB)

Legal information

Any offer of a place to study is subject to your acceptance of the University’s Terms and Conditions and Student Regulations.