Sports Law 2025

CANADA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Janie Soublière, Soublière Sport Law

assist sports associations, big or small, and pro - fessional or amateur with this developing (and arguably long overdue) integrity and good gov - ernance movement. It has started with a realisa - tion of the importance of changing culture and mind-set, but it needs to be grounded in sound rules and regulations and legal processes which can be understood, implemented and respected by all. This is an area to follow closely, not only in Can - ada, but globally. Other Trends and Developments to Follow NCAA Eligibility rule changes to men’s and women’s ice hockey (and skiing) The NCAA Division I Council adopted a proposal to change rules for pre-enrolment activities in men ‘ s ice hockey and skiing. This will enable prospects who participate in Major Junior ice hockey or on professional teams to retain NCAA eligibility so long as they are not paid more than actual and necessary expenses as part of that participation. This rule change will be effective from 1 August 2025. The new NCAA Eligibility Rules are already sig - nificantly impacting Canadian student athletes who wish to attend US colleges. This means that major junior hockey players in Canada are now eligible to strike scholarship deals to play for US college hockey. One can be sure that as soon as the NCAA eligibility rules change was reported, US college programmes began target - ing and recruiting elite male and female 20-year- olds from Canadian major junior leagues who will graduate following the 2024-25 season. All student athletes need to understand that there are certain academic requirements and eligibility rules that they must meet to qualify for enrolment at an NCAA institution. Players

and athletes should therefore take the neces - sary steps to understand these requirements to evaluate potential opportunities including seek - ing out the services of a lawyer if necessary to assist them understand their rights and respon - sibilities in this regard. North America: a soccer/football hotspot North America, including Canada, is becoming a football ( “soccer” to Canadians) hotspot. The MLS, CPL and NSL have gained exponen - tial momentum and greater fan bases, and the FIFA Legal and Compliance Division moved its corporate offices from Zurich to Miami in 2024. In 2026, the biggest football tournament in the world will take place in North America from 11 June to 19 July 2026. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be jointly hosted by 16 cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States. These countries are all part of the Con - federation of North, Central America, and Car - ibbean Association Football (widely known as CONCACAF) which is one of FIFA’s six continen - tal governing bodies. There are numerous reasons for football fans to be excited about the World Cup coming to North America. Notably, it will be the first FIFA World Cup to use a 48-team format, expanded from 32. This means more teams and more games... and more drama! From broadcasting rights and sponsorship deals to risk management and security, there will be no shortage of legal issues arising out of Canada’s co-hosting duties at the highly anticipated 2026 World Cup. Sports lawyers are sure to have their hands full.

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