Adebambo Adewopo
In the mission of raising awareness on the role of intellectual property (IP), World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) once again beams its searchlight on the ubiquitous world of sports, and its intersection with IP. The theme “IP and Sports: Ready, Set, Innovate’ marks World IP Day 2026 and requires us to review the often overlooked IP-Sports dynamics and the pivotal role of IP in the modern world of sports. Within a short span of time, sports theme has recurred in recent annals of World IP Day. In 2019, the global community marked World IP Day with the theme “Reach for Gold: IP and Sports’, a testament to this dynamic that has defined human existence since time immemorial. Nigeria, a reputable sporting nation, joins the rest of WIPO member states in celebrating the creative and unifying power of sports as an integral part of our everyday life and integrating it within its IP consciousness.
While the universality of IP has always found connection with every human endeavour, with sports, the intersection is increasingly evident. As livestreams of the world’s sporting talents remain constantly visible and their contributions to society truly indelible, IP conveniently integrates into sport’s legal and economic infrastructures, contributing significantly to the optimisation of the creative energies within the world of sports.
The theme weaves together the intersection of IP and sports and how IP has become the singular tool for the promotion and exploitation of the creative and innovative attributes of sports, not only for the benefit of sports men and women across the world but also for a whole range of value captured by the activities of all those who participate in sports including promoters, managers, professional clubs, sports federations, businesses and the public at large. For the most part, anywhere there is creativity and innovation, IP is always present and uniquely transformative. Coming from the origins of culture and innovation, the character of sports is not permanently locked in the spectacles of competitions and entertainment. Today, the recent evolution of sports has been shaped by three developments, namely, commercialisation, technology and unmitigated innovation.
These developments have rapidly transformed sports into a multibillion-dollar industry in the heart of the global economy, providing employment, generating revenue, attracting investment and tourism, and contributing to national and global GDP, with IP central to the shift. By current estimate, the sports economy, comprising professional sports, associated rights, sporting brands and infrastructure, generates $2.3 trillion in annual revenues, about 2% of global GDP, representing a major global economic driver and is projected to reach $3.7 trillion by 2030 and almost $9 trillion mark by 2050. The multiplier effect extends to various dependent industries such as fashion, tourism, entertainment, games, food and more. As a key factor influencing creativity, innovation and economic development, the role of IP in sports is now indispensable.
The commercial value of IP manifests in various ways through different streams of income that accrue for the benefit of sportsmen and women, their representatives, governing bodies, media, allied businesses and associated professional services. Major sports events such as the FIFA World Cup, Olympics, World Athletics, Grand Slams, Golf Tournaments, Formula One, United States’ NFL, NBA, the different continental meetings, and others at professional, high-competition as well as amateur levels, have become economic engines through commercialisation and exploitation of rights. This trend has continued to showcase the value of IP in the sports industry in today’s economy.
Consequently, sports are now assets defined by property and media rights, and IP-driven. Beyond strictly legal rights, IP acts as a commercial tool that enhances industry and market performance by providing new revenue streams to unlock the wealth of sporting talents. IP rights are exploited primarily through the image rights of players, broadcast and streaming rights in the licensing of live broadcast, merchandising and branding, including designs and patents for sports equipment manufacturers, among others. This has remained the model for the commercial success of some of the major sports leagues in the world and transformed the industry into a driver of economic growth.
For example, when our sporting talents, whether in soccer, basketball, athletics, golf, and other sports, earn huge fees for their creative talents on and off the field of play; when governing bodies and media organisations license rights for broadcasting and streaming to the public; when brand owners engage talents to market and endorse their products and brands, when manufacturers invent and produce new and innovative designs of sports equipment, it is IP reshaping and delivering the gains of sporting abilities and enterprise. The streams of income engendered by IP rights have helped spurn the creation of wealth, sustained the development of talents and rapid transformation of the sports industry to what it has become today globally.
Even more, this theme is instructive as the FIFA World Cup, the world’s biggest sporting event, takes place this year in the USA, Canada and Mexico, with over 5 billion global viewership and projected to reach $10.9 billion in revenue with broadcasting rights exceeding $4.2 billion. This year is expected to surpass Qatar’s 2022 $7.57 billion and over $3.43 billion in revenue and broadcasting rights respectively, the highest rights-income in World Cup’s history. The model for commercial success remains the same – IP, a success underpinned by far-reaching global, social, cultural and political significance that further reinforces the interaction of IP and sport. The use of IP rights to generate revenue, license rights, advertise and brand, innovate, and promote new enterprises across industries, including fashion, tourism, entertainment, gaming, food, and more, continues to reposition the sports economy as a significant contributor to economic growth.
IP legal frameworks have evolved to define and balance the rights and commercial interests of athletes, teams, and sponsors. However, in Nigeria, the commercial benefit of sports has not been sufficiently exploited. While the key to this arrangement lies in the utilisation of IP, existing IP laws which provide the enabling legal and regulatory frameworks to commercialise through the different rights granted by law alongside the potential streams of income are available to the sporting talents. In recent years, Nigeria’s emerging IP law and policy ecosystem has recorded notable developments that have proved important to the sustenance of creative and innovative endeavours that can support the sports and dependent industries.
For example, the current copyright regime ensures an enhanced enabling framework for the protection and enforcement of rights, inclusive of the digital environment, and enables the community of sports men and women to gain more control over their talents and personal brands. With the Copyright Act 2022, the Business Facilitation Act 2021 with its consequential amendments as it relates to Trademarks, and more recently, the Nigeria Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy 2025 (NIPPS), the path to major shifts in the protection, management and regulation of IPRs that would inure to the benefit of the different categories of right owners has never been more defined especially in the current fast-paced digital and knowledge-driven economy.
With clear objectives, implementation strategies, monitoring and enforcement mechanisms, including IP generation and commercialisation, among others, the NIPPS, in particular, presents an extensive and defining framework in the emerging reform of Nigeria’s IP governance and its application across sectors. These developments no doubt will bring the promise of IP to the community of creators and right owners, including the sports men and women who should enjoy the fruits of their labour in the sports arena and beyond.
Given that the full emergence of Nigeria’s sports industry is heavily dependent on rapid commercialisation and increased investment, this theme should remind our sports administrators, professionals and stakeholders of the importance of IP as a strategic instrument for developing a vibrant sports economy. Part of the future of Nigerian IP ecosystem for the different sectors such as sports and connected industries is the dynamic leveraging of IP in harnessing sporting talents and bringing home the benefits of IP rights in industry practices and transactions.
As IP occupies a front row at the world’s major sports and media centres and board rooms, this theme therefore reawakens the sports community beyond the thrills of winning laurels and also to the role of IP in fostering an enabling environment for more sporting talents to thrive and for the transformation of sports industry as an economic powerhouse.
Professor Adewopo SAN is a former Director-General of Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC).
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