How Is the Integrity of Sport Protected in the United States
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How is the Integrity of Sport Protected
in the United States?
Matthew J. Mitten*
1. INTRODUCTION
The integrity of sport has both on-field and off-field components, which may be pro-
tected externally by laws and government regulation and/or by sport governing bodies. To
protect the on-field integrity of sport, federal and state statutes prohibit sports bribery and
tampering or rigging, and until recently generally prohibited betting or gambling on sports
events (which is now a legal and regulated industry in some states). There are no federal or
state government administrative agencies or ministries that directly regulate sport. Rather,
this is a role assumed exclusively (or at least primarily) by private sport governing bodies
and leagues largely free of any public law constraints or judicial intervention. Courts gener-
ally are very deferential to the rule-making, dispute resolution, and enforcement authority of
sport governing bodies at all levels of national (e.g., college, professional, and Olympic) or
state (e.g., high school) athletic competition to protect the on-field and off-field integrity of
sport, and judges rarely invalidate or refuse to enforce arguably reasonable internal rules and
decisions to protect the integrity of sport.
The essential characteristics of sport, which are necessary to maintain its integrity and
distinguish it from other forms of entertainment for the benefit of its organizing entities,
participating athletes, and consumers (i.e., spectators and fans) are: 1) uniform rules of the
game and athlete eligibility requirements;' 2) competitive balance between individuals and
teams to ensure prospectively uncertain game or event results;2 and 3) consistent and ra-
tional internal application of integrity of sport rules by its governing body and disciplinary
sanctions for their violation (with appropriate due process protections).3
* Professor of Law and Executive Director, National Sports Law Institute and the LL.M. in Sports Law
Program for Foreign Lawyers, Marquette University Law School, Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Arbitrator, Court of
Arbitration for Sport, Lausanne, Switzerland. The author acknowledges and appreciates the comments of Professor
Paul Anderson, Director, National Sports Law Institute, Marquette University Law School regarding a draft of this
chapter as well as the research assistance of Nicholas Jordan, Marquette University Law School Class of 2018.
1. Biediger v. Quinnipiac Univ., 691 F.3d 85, 105 (2d Cir. 2012) (the touchstones of sport are a uniform
set of rules for competition and restriction of competition to contests against ... opponents satisfying the same
eligibility requirements, which ensure[s] that play is fair in each game, that team performances can be compared
across a season, and that teams can be distinguished in terms of quality); Noffke v. Bakke, 315 Wis.2d 350, 364-
65, 760 N.W.2d 156, 162 (Wis. 2009) (defining a sport as [ain activity involving physical exertion and skill that is
governed by a set of rules or customs).
2. Bowers v. Fed'n Intemationale de L'Automobile, 489 F.3d 316, 321-22 (7th Cir. 2007) (a spectator is
entitled only to view whatever event transpire[s] and has no right to a sports event that is exciting or during
which participants competed well); Castillo v. Tyson, 268 A.D.2d 336, 701 N.Y.S.2d 423, 424-425 (2003) (re-
jecting spectators' claim that boxing match ending in a boxer's disqualification for biting opponent's ear is not a
legitimate fight, which entitles them to refund of money paid to view it, because disqualification for violation of
applicable rules is a possibility that a fight fan can reasonably expect).
3. See, e.g., Molinas v. NBA, 190 F. Supp. 241, 244 (S.D.N.Y. 1961) (upholding professional sports league's
lifetime ban of player for betting on his team's games because confidence of the public in basketball has been
shattered, due to a series of gambling incidents . . . [and] the league was justified in determining that it was
absolutely necessary to avoid even the slightest connection with gambling, gamblers, and those who had done
business with gamblers, in the future).](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/tresl19&div=11&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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How Is the Integrity of Sport Protected in the United States
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