Sports law in Ireland

The regulation of sport falls under the auspices of the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (hereinafter the ‘Department’). It was originally established in 1959 and has undergone a number of name changes over the years. Sport is one of the policy areas of the Department, and in 2018 it published the National Sports Policy 2018–2027. Based on international best practice, it identified 57 actions that will ‘transform our sporting landscape over the next decade’. The actions included Sport Ireland developing initiatives in conjunction with National Governing Bodies (NGBs), schools, third-level institutions, and other relevant organisations in order to encourage increased participation in sport, including children, older persons, females, those from lower socio-economic groups (SEGs), persons with disabilities, the LGBTI+ community, the Traveller community, and other ethnic minorities. Integrity of sport was also identified under Action 42 of the National Sports Policy 2018–2027 on the prevention of manipulation of sporting competitions. Increased investment and funding in sport by the state was a common thread within the actions as Action 43 called for the state’s investment in sport to exceed €220 million by 2027.
The Department has a number of