Reshaping Endorsements and Sponsorships of Athletes, Teams, and Naming Rights for Venues and Tournaments: The impact of the digital age on sports sponsorship contracts

Michael D. Hobbs | Troutman Pepper

Michael Hobbs is a partner in the Atlanta office of the national law firm Troutman Pepper. Mike is actively involved in intellectual property registration, licensing, and litigation throughout the United States and internationally. He frequently represents clients in Federal Court and specializes in actions and negotiations across the spectrum of intellectual property, including trademarks, copyrights, advertising, trade secrets, publishing, and endorsements. His work has included a significant focus on representing clients in sponsorship agreement negotiations with professional sports teams to become the official sponsors and partners of the teams and their stadiums.

He has represented clients in negotiations for product and service endorsement agreements with many different athletes and teams including Keith Mitchell, Nick Faldo, Chipper Jones, Tom Glavine, Paul Azinger, Luke Donald, Charles Howell III, Jonathan Byrd, Stacy Lewis, Jenny Finch, Billy Andrade, Todd Helton, John Smoltz, Jeff Sluman, Larry Mize, John Cook, Edwin Moses, Teresa Edwards, the U.S. National Volleyball Team, the U.S. National Softball Team, Atlanta Track Club (Peachtree Road Race), and others. Mike has also represented numerous clients in advertising review and compliance matters, including review for FTC, national television network broadcast, false advertising, and comparative advertising issues. He is a past Chair of the IP Section of the State Bar of Georgia and is listed in Best Lawyers in America for Copyright and Trademark Law.

I. Understanding the goals of sports sponsorships | 11:00am – 12:00pm

Break |12:00pm – 12:10pm

II. How to negotiate contracts to successfully position brands | 12:10pm – 12:40pm

III. Where do NFT’s and other new electronic products fit into the sponsorship landscape | 12:40pm – 1:10pm