Doping-related regulations in India are predominantly governed and controlled by National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). The Anti-Doping Bill, 2018 mandates imprisonment for up to four years and/or fines of up to INR1 million on any sportsperson involved in doping. This particular clause has now been removed after it faced serious objection from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). NADA made certain amendments to the Anti-Doping Bill and tabled it before the ministry and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for clearance. The reason for the amendment is that there are certain substances which may be prohibited for consumption by an athlete which may be legally purchased. The criminality extent of the offence will be invoked only in extreme and exceptional circumstances wherein the intent and the motive are proven beyond doubt.

Prohibited Substances

NADA follows the same list provided by WADA with respect to prohibited substances. This is divided into substances:

• prohibited at all times;
• prohibited in-competitions; and
• prohibited in particular sports.

The Role of NADA

NADA was formed on 24 November 2005 under the provisions of the Societies Registration Act, 1860. The prime motive of the Agency is to ensure a sporting nation free from the clutches of doping. Its primary objective is to ensure that it:

• lays down and puts in place anti-doping rules as per the WADA Code and regulations;
• regulates doping-control programmes in various sports across the country at various levels;
• promotes research to create nation-wide awareness about doping and its ill effects;
• runs drug testing programmes at various levels; and
• ensures that all sporting organisations comply with the anti-doping code.

Its headquarters are located in Delhi, India.

NADA works and functions in accordance with the Code and regulations of the WADA. India is a signatory to the Copenhagen Declaration on Anti-Doping and the UNESCO International Convention against Doping.

In the recent past, many sportsperson – in the fields of bodybuilding, weightlifting, wrestling, athletics and even cricket – have been alleged to be involved in consuming banned substances for performance enhancement.

Match-Fixing

Match-fixing has haunted the global sports industry for years and is one of the most pressing issues and concerns in the world of sport. Incidents of match-fixing gives rise to mistrust in the mind of audiences and hence the loss of interest and the viewership of the sport. It also creates a massive negative impact. The Indian cricket world was rocked by a wave of match-fixing allegations in the years 1999–2000. It was one of the most disgraceful periods in Indian sporting history. Cricket is the most-loved sport in India and cricketers are worshipped. The news of match-fixing in cricket matches left a black mark in the hearts and mind of millions of sports lovers across India (and the world).

In 2013, the Indian government presented a draft bill for the prevention of sporting fraud; however, this bill never become a statute. The draft bill did cover the definition of sporting fraud, the accused, and the punishment involved for such offences. The punishment as prescribed in the draft bill can extend to five years of imprisonment, a fine of INR1 million or five times the benefit derived from the sporting fraud.

In 2016, the RM Lodha Committee told the Supreme Court of India that the Law Commission of India (LCI) should look sternly into criminalising match-fixing in sport. The LCI later agreed and concurred that match-fixing of any kind in sport should be a criminal offence carrying stringent punishment. India is yet to implement a stringent sports law regime for illegal and unregulated betting and match-fixing. In most cases, such situations are dealt with under certain sections of the Indian Penal Code relating to cheating, fraud and criminal breach of trust. The need to have a regulated sports law dealing with all these aspects is an immediate requirement.

Betting

In India, the legal status of betting is not yet dealt with by the judicial courts. To legalise it, the competent courts must first determine the requirement of whether betting is a game of skill or a game of chance. There are many judgments from various courts across India laying down the principle regarding what may amount to a game of skill and what may amount to game of chance and, accordingly, what may fall under which ambit. The Public Gambling Act, 1867, which is the current prevailing specific statute pertaining to gambling and betting, does not specifically provide for regulation relating to online betting. Each state in India has its own specific rules pertaining to betting. A specific statute to cover online betting is also the need of the hour in India.

A cohesive statute for sports law regulation is very important to curb the unregulated betting sector and prevent match-fixing. Several attempts have been made in the past to find a way to tackle these burning issues. The most prominent of these occurred in 2013, when the draft Prevention of Sporting Fraud Bill was introduced into the Parliament with an intention to curb match-fixing, fraud, cheating and other illegal activities around the sporting world. It proposed stringent punishment and fines for such activities.

Betting or gambling is illegal in most of India. But there is no law that makes online betting an illegal activity. It is also difficult to catch internet gambling offenders if the websites are hosted by servers located in countries where betting is legal. See 1.2 Integrity (Betting) for further details.

Fantasy Sports

The most regulated form of betting India is that of fantasy sports, which are determined to be a game of skill. The court has directed all online fantasy sports platforms must ensure that they provide all the correct disclaimers and acknowledgements to all participants as the same may have huge financial implications for each participant.

The information available on such fantasy sports platforms are mainly individual player statistics and are the ones commonly available in public forums. Certain competent courts of India have passed judgment detailing what amounts to game of skill and what is a game of chance. Accordingly, they have allowed fantasy sports operating as games of skill to continue, subject to certain terms and considerations.

Doping

NADA in India has an Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel and also an Anti-Doping Appeal Panel.

Typically, the process works as follows.

• "A" samples are collected from each player and sent to the lab.
• If the samples test positive for a banned substance, the name of the athlete is decoded as per the adverse analytical finding of their "A" sample.
• NADA will commence its internal review on whether the substance used is banned, what sort of substance was consumed and under what circumstances.
• If the review concludes that there is no positive finding of consumption of a banned substance, the athlete and all other respective bodies and organisations shall be duly informed.
• If the review reveals the consumption of the banned substance, the athlete shall be provisionally suspended by NADA pending the hearing panel.
• An athlete has the right to request the analysis of their "B" sample within seven working days of receiving the notice concerning the adverse analytical finding.
• If the athlete requests "B" sample analysis, NADA contacts the laboratory to schedule a time and date and notifies the athlete of this.
• If there is no request by the athlete to witness their "B" Sample, NADA informs the laboratory to conduct the analysis in the presence of an independent observer.
• If the "B" sample analysis by the laboratory proves negative, the entire test will be considered negative and the athlete and all other respective bodies and organisations shall be duly informed.
• If the "B" sample Analysis confirms the "A" sample adverse analytical finding, a second notice will be served by NADA to the athlete along with a copy to all other respective bodies and organisations asserting the anti-doping rule violation; the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel will be also notified along with all documents relevant to the assertion, for disciplinary proceedings to be conducted in the positive case as per the WADA-compliant anti-doping rules of NADA.
• The athlete will be advised to present their case before the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel on the date and time fixed by the panel for hearing.
• During the hearing process, the athlete is given an opportunity to be represented by counsel and interpreter (at their own expense) to establish a basis for eliminating or reducing the sanctions.
• The athlete will have the right to appeal against the decision of the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel by lodging a notice of appeal with the Anti-Doping Appeal Panel within 14 days of the decision of the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel.

Betting

India has yet to implement a stringent sports law regime for illegal and unregulated betting and match-fixing. See 1.2 Integrity (Betting) and 1.3 Betting for further detail.

Sports-related rights in India are mainly restricted to sponsorship rights, broadcasting rights, image rights, merchandising rights, copyrights, trade mark rights, design rights, publicity rights, ticketing rights, hospitality rights, travel rights and data/content rights.

Secondary Ticket Sales

Secondary sale of tickets in India is mainly governed through the official ticketing website for a particular sporting event, though, people do tend to offer and purchase tickets through many secondary websites, when the official ticket domain is sold out. In India, there is no legal restriction against reselling match tickets. There is a restriction on the transfer of certain types of tickets but not all of them are non-transferable

There have been instances of arrests made by police, notably during the 2011 Cricket World Cup in India, wherein, there were many instances of people selling tickets on various platforms for huge sums. The same was construed by the police to be an offence of black marketing, cheating, misrepresentation and fraud.

However, there have been cases where the police have alleged that reselling of a ticket through an online platform amounts to cheating and fraud and the courts have considered otherwise. This is because the person dealing in the ticket clearly informed the buyer which ticket was being sold and the buyer was aware of the actual price of the ticket and that the seller was selling it for a higher price. The same will not amount to cheating, misrepresentation and fraud.

In India, there are certain states who have taken the steps of implementing state-wide statutes regarding the reselling of tickets through unauthorised platforms.

Sponsorship and marketing of brands through sporting events and sporting teams is very prominent in India. The common practice is to be either a sole sponsor or be collectively involved in an event as a joint sponsor, event sponsor, title sponsor, hospitality partner, travel partner, etc.

In most cases, the sponsor for a sporting event will have to approach the respective sporting body governing the sport and/or the event to get access to the sponsorship rights for any event, in the manner applicable.

The key terms will be as follows:

• duration;
• details of the event;
• extension of the sponsorship;
• commercials;
• role and responsibilities;
• scope of services;
• restrictions;
• representations and warranties;
• type of sponsorship;
• territory;
• indemnity;
• limitation of liability;
• jurisdiction and governing laws; and
• other standard boiler plate clauses.

Broadcasting rights are awarded to a particular direct-to-home (DTH) channel service provider or to an over-the-top (OTT) platform by the respective sporting body, governing the sport and/or the event. The exploitation of a broadcasting right to derive profits is mainly through advertisements of brands, using the respective time slot and space and also through viewership and subscription models.

Mostly, the sports rights-holder enters into a fixed-term contract (eg, for three, five or seven years/seasons) with the broadcasters on an exclusive basis for a fixed amount, depending on the discussion and negotiations. In India there are currently just two to three big broadcasting houses for sports and most of the broadcasting rights relating to sport revolve around them.

Typically, the accessibility of venues for the purpose of broadcasting is covered under the agreement entered into between the sporting body and the broadcaster. As a part of the fixed exclusive broadcasting arrangement, accessibility to venues is compulsory.

The intellectual property rights over the content/event in the broadcast lie mainly with the sporting bodies in most cases, with a licence given to the broadcaster to telecast the same. This is the typical arrangement; however, the same may differ from sport to sport.

There are proprietary rights attached to any sporting event and the same is owned by the association or the sporting body organising/conducting the event. The broadcasting rights are granted to a broadcaster through a specific exclusive agreement for a certain period; however, the rights attached to the footage and the telecast are mostly with the organiser of the event. The footage is mainly obtained from the broadcaster and archived with the sporting body for future licensing and exploitation.

Sporting events in India are typically organised in a very systematised manner.

• Fix the dates as per the available schedules.
• Decide the format and the fixtures.
• Call for various sponsorships and partner arrangements.
• Block (book) the venues and infrastructure requirements.
• Schedule the travel plans.
• Enter into the broadcasting arrangement.
• Arrange for all regulatory and local requisite permissions.
• Ensure adequate security arrangements.
• Schedule the ticketing arrangements.
• Appoint event managers, if required.
• Arrange for press releases and announcements.
• Conduct the event.

Participation in a sporting event is mainly governed by the eligibility criteria, rankings, schedule, conflicts in participation, and adhering to the applicable rules and regulations of the event.

Any sports organiser hosting and organising an event owes a duty of care towards the sportspersons and their audience. This duty of care may be with respect to security, health hazards, violence, racism, catastrophes, stampedes, vandalism, terrorist attacks and anything that can be dangerous to the sportsperson and/or their audience.

There have been instances in the past wherein cricket matches have been called off as the pitch was considered to be dangerous, match was called off as there was a suspected terrorist attack because the bus of the visiting team was attacked, audiences involved in drunk, abusive and racist behaviour have been fined and removed from the ground in many instances, audiences have started a riotous behaviour and obstructing the game. One classic example is 1996 Cricket ODI World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, wherein the match was called off due to the behaviour of the crowd.

Liability of the Organiser towards Sportspersons

Generally, under the law of torts, to extend liability to the organiser in the event of an injury to a sportsperson the latter would have to prove the following:

• the sporting organisation owed a duty of care towards the participant;
• the organisation breached that reasonable duty of care; and
• the injury sustained by the participant was a result of that breach of duty.

The competent court may hold the organiser liable if it fails to observe the duty of care it owes towards the players with this being the direct cause of the injury sustained by such player.

Liability of the Organiser towards the Audience

The duty of venue owners to provide a safe environment to spectators/viewers was laid down by the High Court of Delhi in Association of Victims of Uphaar Tragedy v Union of India (2003 ACJ 1631), wherein the negligence of the venue owners of a cinema hall resulted in a stampede which caused 69 fatalities. It was held that the venue owners were duty bound, in the interest of society, to provide a safe environment to spectators or viewers. Spectators/viewers who survived the tragedy mentioned that it could have been avoided by the owner of the venue by taking certain necessary precautions.

Duties of the BCCI

The Supreme Court of India in one of its judgments observed that the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) is responsible for mitigating injuries to players and promoting and ensuring the safety of the sport. “The Board which represents a nation with or without a statutory flavour has duties to perform towards the players, coaches, umpires, administrators and other team officials. They have a duty to create safe rules for the sport, if by reason thereof a physical injury to the player is to be avoided and to keep safety aspect under ongoing review.”

The judgment has opened up the requirement of liability being attached to the organisers of sporting events in the case of an injury to a player or a spectator in such events, especially if that injury is attributable to negligence or omission in rule making or organising by the organiser. Generally, the duty of keeping a sporting event free from violence and disorder is on the organiser. The organiser needs to ensure a thorough check and have security in place to curb such incidents.

Sporting bodies in India mostly take the form of a federation or an association formed as a trust or a society under the applicable Indian Trust Act, 1882 or the Societies Registration Act, 1860.

In the year 2017, the government of India formed an expert panel to draft the National Code for Good Governance in Sports 2017 (NCGGS 2017). The Code is yet to come into force as there are disagreements among many members regarding it.

In recent years, there have been many instances where national sports governing bodies were derecognised for not complying with the requirements and the rules laid down by the National Sports Development Code of India, 2011 (NSDC).

The NSDC was notified by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India in 2011.

The NSDC largely governs the functioning of national-level sports governing bodies, officially termed National Sports Federations (NSF). NSFs under the NSDC are fully accountable for the management, direction, promotion, and sponsorship of their federation at all points. Any entity that seeks to attain recognition as an NSF in the future also needs to abide by the rules and regulations laid down by the NSDC. The NSDC also regulates the functioning of the Sports Authority of India (SAI). The NSDC lays down various regulations and eligibility conditions for the recognition of NSFs, and detailed process regarding the same.

An application has to be made to the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports in the form prescribed by the NSDC for recognition detailing all the requirements. Renewal of recognition for NSFs is automatic on a yearly basis provided all necessary documents and compliance is in place as prescribed. Also, it is imperative for a federation pertaining to a new sport to be in existence for three years and show credibility and popularity to attain recognition from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

The conduct of NSF officers is codified under the rules and policies of the NSDC and also of the relevant NSFs and each member need to adhere and abide by these.

Sports in India is funded through a variety of means. Charity, donations, trusts, sponsorships, grants and so on and so forth.

The National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) was established in 1998 under the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890. It was duly notified by the government of India in November 1998. The NSDF helps sportspersons excel by providing them with platforms, funding and proper opportunities to train under coaches of international repute so that they can prepare themselves with the right techniques and knowledge for international competitions and gain proper exposure. The NSDF also provides financial assistance for the development of infrastructure, sporting facilities, academies and activities for the promotion of sports.

The money is distributed in accordance with the level of the sport in question, its popularity, the expense that has to be incurred, the requirement of promotion, the relevant geographical area, the existing infrastructure and (obviously) the requirement for facilities.

COVID-19 had a global impact on all businesses and sports is no exception. Promotion has taken a backseat during the peak of lockdown; however, with sports coming back slowly but surely, better times are hoped for and confidently anticipated.

Economic support for businesses affected by COVID-19 may not be available to many sectors of the Indian economy as business is returning to normal. India has now administered almost 1.75 billion vaccines and the numbers of new daily COVID-19 cases has been reduced immensely.

Generally, we see a lot of investment and acquiring of stakes in teams of a particular sporting league, sponsorship deals for a particular sporting events or broadcasting rights deals for particular sporting events. Most of the teams in India's sporting leagues are either owned by one big conglomerate or are jointly owned by a few groups.

One noteworthy sporting deal in the recent past was the sponsorship deal for the Indian cricket team for a period of three years for a considerable amount awarded to by BYJU’s, the Bengaluru-based educational technology and online tutorial firm.

Registration of a trade mark in India is governed under the provisions of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. Typically, a trade mark is registered by filing a form for the trade mark for registration purposes along with all the required documents before the Trade Marks Registry. The product/services that the trade mark may be associated with are typically classified in accordance with the classes provided for under the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The process starts with a prior search of similar trade marks in the particular class and an application for a registration of the trade mark based on the search report, along with the filing of all required documents.

Once applied for, the authority will take its time to advertise it in the journal, seek objections, raise objections, require the filing of various documents, conduct a hearing and issue the registration certificate. The validity of the registration is for a period ten years from the date of the application. Once registered, the applicant can use ® on the right-hand upper corner of the trade mark.

Limitations on Trade Mark Registration

Marks that cannot be registered include:

• anything that is not distinctive and is generic in nature;
• anything that is descriptive in nature;
• anything used on a customary basis;
• names of places and towns;
• already registered or pending registered trade marks;
• anything that is prohibited under the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950;
• anything that is offensive to any religion, caste or creed;
• anything that me be considered as obscene or immoral;
• anything that is deceptively similar to another mark; and
• anything that denotes a shape, colour, quantity.

The main advantage of registration of a trade mark is that you get statutory protection for the trade mark in case of any infringement or passing off by any other party.

The copyright provisions are covered under the Copyrights Act, 1957. Registration of a copyright in India is governed under the Copyrights Act, 1957.

Typically, a copyright for any work or content is registered by filing a form for the copyright for registration purposes along with all the required documents before the Copyrights Office. The process starts with a prior search of registered copyrights available in the database.

Once applied, the authority will take its time to scrutinise the application, advertise it in the journal, seek objections, raise objections, require the filing of various documents, conduct hearings and issue the registration certificate. Once the application is filed, the department will advertise the title of the copyright with the name of the author and the genre of the right attached to the work and shall seek objections within a time frame of one month from any third party.

The validity of the registration of a copyright is for a period of 60 years from the date of the death of the author. Once the registration is granted, the author can use © on the right-hand upper corner.

The common defence available is to sue any party for the infringement of a copyright.

Image Rights

The constituents of celebrity/image rights are still a matter of confusion in the absence of any statutory definition. The laws in India pertaining to image rights are nebulous and not recognised as distinct legal rights. However, various judicial precedents in India have recognised the following traits as personality rights which may be exploited: individuals personality, name of an individual (including official name, stage name or nickname), signature, voice, photograph, physical appearance/likeness of the celebrity, title of the celebrity in a particular role, a specific character portrayed by the celebrity, a performance (including dancing or acting), style of dialogue delivery by the celebrity, merchandising rights, and gestures and mannerisms. In short, from an economic point of view, anything that can be related to a celebrity and used for commercial purpose can be considered as their right, which should be given protection under law.

Trade Marks

However, individuals may apply for protection under the Trade Mark Act for their name, likeness and nicknames, among other things, with the Indian Trade Marks Registry in order to obtain statutory protection against misuse. This is of strategic importance to celebrities who intend to use their image and likeness to identify their own or an authorised line of merchandise.

Passing Off

The action of passing off is relevant in cases where a person’s name, likeness or performance characteristics are misused. An action in passing off may lie for any unauthorised exploitation of a celebrity’s "goodwill" or "fame" by falsely indicating endorsement of products by the athlete. Similarly, the "wrongful appropriation of personality" could amount to passing off as the athlete could be said to have a proprietary right in the exclusive marketing for gain in their personality. 

In the case of ICC Development (International) Ltd. v Arvee Enterprises, wherein the Delhi High Court observed that “the right of publicity has evolved from the right of privacy and can inhere only in an individual or in any indicia of an individual's personality like his name, personality trait, signature, voice, etc. An individual may acquire the right of publicity by virtue of his association with an event, sport, movie, etc. However, that right does not inhere in the event in question, that made the individual famous, nor in the corporation that has brought about the organisation of the event. Any effort to take away the right of publicity from the individuals, to the organiser {non-human entity} of the event would be vocative of Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India. No persona can be monopolised. The right of Publicity vests in an individual and the alone is entitled to profit from it”.

Various sports bodies and athletes can exploit the IP rights owned by them by virtue of a licensing agreement, whether in an exclusive or a non-exclusive manner with any third party. IP rights, if owned by a party, may not be restricted from being assigned or licensed to any other party, unless that licensing is specifically prohibited or barred by a competent court of law or any regulatory authority, or is of such nature that the same is not licensable or assignable.

Sports related data or statistics are mainly published by sporting publications, websites and news-transmitting mediums. They may not be at all times and in all cases IP-protected information, as the same will be commonly available across various forums. Considering that the same is a freely accessible data, the same can be used by stakeholders and sporting bodies.

However, if a statistic is a protected one or data is specifically published and carried out by a particular forum or a publication based on an algorithm or a formula or some research analysis and studies, the same may require specific permission for the purpose of usage.

Commercial opportunities originating in sports data can be used in many ways. Sports data is central to certain sports business. Broadcasters use player performance data and statistics for attractive packaging of their content and to attract more viewers and consumers. Data related to sportspersons is duly used by fantasy sports to attract consumers, either from information that is readily available or though agreements with leagues and event organisers.

The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 (PDPB) creates a legal structure to protect the personal data of individuals; however, the same is still being discussed. Over the past decade, athletes, teams and other sports entities have become increasingly reliant on their personal data.

One of the main reasons to preserve and archive the data pertaining to any sportsperson is to ensure that performance can be enhanced by analysing that data. Personal data is also required for the purpose of registration for any event. Data relating to health, timing, exercise regime, workout schedule and fitness tests is important for the development of the sportsperson in every sphere.

National courts play an important role in resolving and settling disputes relating to sports. Historically the courts have been involved in matters pertaining to match fixing, cheating, fraud, misrepresentation, consumer disputes, infringement of intellectual property rights, breach of contract and so on and so forth.

The hierarchy regarding the dispute resolution mechanism is mainly governed under contractual arrangements or the rules and regulations framed by the relevant sporting body and may differ from one to another.

Arbitration in sports is a very common and sought-after approach in India. Mediation is also another form of alternate dispute resolution mechanism available in the field of sports.

Most contractual arrangements in the recent past have provided, in detailed mediation and arbitration clauses, for these to be the primary mediums to settle disputes between parties, failing which, they may be referred to a competent court of jurisdiction.

Sports governing bodies are typically an entity in the form of a society or a trust. The sanctions that they provide are mostly within their ambit, power and rules framed accordingly.

Considering that sanctions are mainly an internal procedure of any sporting body, the remedies available to any party will be before a competent civil or criminal court if they can prove fraud, misuse of funds, bribery or a scam relating to such sanctions.

A sportsperson generally has a yearly or a fixed-term contract with the relevant sporting body, which lays down the terms and conditions, along with the remuneration for the year.

The remuneration is revised on a periodic basis and often the sportspersons are graded as per their seniority and deliverables.

One issue that regularly arises is the conflict of interest around dual employment or contracts of endorsement with other brands/companies. This is something that needs serious attention and to be handled in a professional manner with proper guidelines being implemented for the same.

Though, the concept of dual employment may not prevail for many sportspersons, there are sporting bodies who urge players not to be involved with private or public sector companies as employees to avoid any possible conflict that may arise.

Structures and restrictions relating to foreign players are mainly governed by the rules and regulations of the leagues in which they play. For example, as per the current rule, the IPL allows a maximum of four foreign players in the playing eleven. In the Pro Kabbaddi league, the rule is that a minimum of one foreign player shall be a part of the match day playing squad.

India as a jurisdiction is a very travel-friendly and visa-friendly country. The following are all eligible for visas.

• Foreign nationals are eligible for employment visas if they are coming to India to take up employment as coaches of national/state-level teams or reputed sports clubs.
• Foreign sportspersons who are given a contract for a specified period by Indian clubs/organisations (this will not include foreign nationals who are engaged in commercial sports events in India on contract (including coaches), for whom the appropriate visa would be B-Sports visa).
• Foreign nationals who are engaged in commercial sports events in India on contract (including coaches) such as the Indian Premier League or the Indian Soccer League, with remuneration; they may be granted "B-Sports" visas with multiple entry facility for the appropriate period (such a foreign national shall comply with all the statutory obligations including payment of taxes).
• Participants in international sports events and the officials (including coaches) of the sports teams (other than those who are engaged in commercial sports events in India)), who may be granted ‘X-SP’ (Entry Sports) visas of appropriate duration.
• Members of the delegations of foreign countries attending meetings of sports bodies such as the International Olympic Association, who will be granted “Conference Visas” of the appropriate sub-category.

The aforesaid grant of visa is subject to fulfilment of all the necessary requirements, documents, procedure and information.

Esports has gained in popularity in recent years due to the popularity of multiplayer online games like PUBG. The market is constantly evolving, and with many big brands ready to enter, the audience base and the revenue are projected to grow strongly. It is becoming a very lucrative opportunity for big brands to reach out to audiences.

Given that audiences spend more time on esports and are more highly engaged in the action, brands believe that they have the opportunity to achieve more value out of their association or sponsorship.

Most of the revenue generated in esports is from sponsorship, which is why it is significant that big brands are ready to invest more in esports. India is now paving the way for more esports events and opening its gate to bigger and wider esports tournaments.

Unlike many other sports, Esports is not seasonal and the business around it is open for the entire year. Many companies and platform are ensuring the sustainability and promotion of esports in India. One of the most important factors for the growth of the esports business in India is connectivity and the telecoms service providers play a huge role in that. The government’s initiative of a digital India will also have a huge impact on the growth of the industry.

It is important that esports are given the status of a sport and not just entertainment and it is imperative that the same be officially recognised as a sport.

Women’s sport is growing fast and rapidly increasing in popularity in India. Viewership and followers are rising daily. Many individual sports feature world-class women athletes, and team games such as cricket boast huge fan followings. The Indian women’s cricket team have been top of the world rankings and have been competing with the best at the global level and also hold various world records such as the highest number of runs and most wickets. There is already a discussion regarding a women’s cricket league, operating in a similar manner to the IPL, in India.

Women’s Sporting Success

PV Sindhu is the first Indian singles badminton player to have won an Olympic Silver and Bronze and is undoubtedly one of India’s most successful athletes of all time. In 2012, Mary Kom became the first Indian female boxer to win an Olympic medal when she won a bronze. Aditi Ashok finished fourth in the golf competition at the Tokyo Olympics. The women’s hockey team narrowly missed out on a bronze medal.

This is all in addition to the many great female sporting individuals who have featured in the field of badminton, wrestling, boxing, tennis, weightlifting, cricket, hockey and track and field over the years.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, India won medals in wrestling, hockey, track and field, badminton, boxing and weightlifting. Women bagged three medals. This success was possible due, in addition to the athletes’ hard work, to the funding, infrastructure, training, sponsorship, data analytics and technology and support in various forms provided for women’s sport in India. A considerable percentage of the participants for India in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were women.

Support for Women’s Sport

Corporates, sports organisations and federations have all contributed to the infrastructure, technology, funding, programmes, training, grants, promotion, and identification and nurturing of young talent.

Many sporting associations and federations in India are promoting and nurturing women in various sports. The Sports Authority of India is actively involved in many such programmes.

The Operations Division of the Sports Authority of India deals with implementation of different sports promotional schemes designed to uncover and develop talented sportspersons in various age groups. These schemes are being implemented by the Sports Authority of India through its Regional Centres located at Bengaluru, Kolkata, Gandhinagar, Kandiveli (Mumbai), Bhopal, Sonepat, Lucknow, Chandigarh, Guwahati and Imphal, along with Academic Wings located at NS NIS, Patiala and the LNCPE, Thiruvananthapuram. The sports science set-up is well developed at Patiala, Bengaluru and Kolkata and these facilities are also being upgraded in other centres.

The Khelo India programme has been introduced to revive the sports culture in India at grass-roots level by building a strong framework for all sports played in the country and establishing India as a great sporting nation.

There is a lot of discussion and interest regarding non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in India. It is a major point of interest and discussion, and sports and entertainment are a hot bed of NFT development, expected to give a huge boost to the NFT market in India. Many sporting celebrities are already showing interest in the NFT sector and a few have already opened their own NFT platform.

NFTs are still a new and upcoming technology and there may be rules and regulations that may need to be framed in the future around their use. The COVID-19 pandemic led to mobility restrictions, social distancing and more working from home, which in turn forced many art connoisseurs to find new way to express their enthusiasm. The advent and introduction of NFTs provided such people with the opportunity to express their passion.

An NFT is a digital asset that represents real-world objects like art, music, in-game items and videos. They are bought and sold online, frequently with cryptocurrency, and they are generally encoded with the same underlying software as many cryptocurrencies.

This financial year (2021), many Indians saw their favourite celebrities launch their own digital collections and were keen to invest in them. This was prompted by the promising nature of NFTs in the market, as well as the urge of fans and passionate followers to be the owner of exclusive items related to some of the greatest personalities or celebrities in the country, and the related bragging rights.

Many sports personalities are now taking the plunge into the NFT world to connect more with their fans and achieve a wider reach, as well as to gain a monetary benefit in the form of a business venture. This platform is allowing sports personalities and various sporting bodies to give unique access to fans, through certain specific digital memorabilia and through ownership over the same based on a unique token. The novelty factor around this platform also drives curiosity.

There is a chance that the sports ministry may consider issuing NFTs celebrating famous achievements of Indian athletes or sports stars in events such as the Olympics or the Asian Games, or of historic sporting moments, such as Cricket World Cup wins.

Potential Upcoming Regulation

Even as NFTs are creating a lot of attention and curiosity, the uncertainties around the yet-to-be released Cryptocurrency Bill have become an area of concern. Nonetheless, companies are trying to find different ways to boost purchases. The government of India proposed the inclusion virtual digital assets for taxation, or a “crypto-tax”, in the Budget 2022–23 as the Finance Bill 2022 was cleared by the Lok Sabha. The Finance Bill, as currently proposed, would impose a tax rate of 30% on cryptocurrency gains. This may have significant repercussions for small-time investors or players in this sector. The new tax provisions are set to come into effect from 1 April 2022.

There are no relevant issues in Indian sports law not already covered in this chapter.