LLM International Sports Law in Practice

Year of Entry 2025/26
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LLM

International Sports Law in Practice

Distance learning Law

Experience the practice of sports law through weekly live and interactive online lectures, seminars and clinical workshops – developing the knowledge, skills, and expertise to thrive globally in the discipline.

Everything you need to know...

  • Pound sign

    What is the fee?

    Home: £10,620 for the course
    International/EU: £10,995 for the course

  • Time

    How long will I study?

    1 Year / 2 Years

  • Location
  • Date

    When do I start?

    September 2025
    January 2026


Course summary

  • Engage in online taught  learning from anywhere, with continuous training and practice.
  • Learn from top sports law experts and practitioners.
  • Gain expertise in sports law procedures at tribunals like CAS, FIFA’s Football Tribunal, and National Anti-Doping Panels.
  • Improve your employability through placements, internships and real-world sporting disputes.

The course will help you gain clinical expertise in the resolution of sport-related disputes – arming you with the knowledge and confidence to effectively advise and represent clients. You’ll gain expertise in pre-trial behaviour, negotiation, arbitration, and advocacy, engaging with real-life cases in a range of practice areas.


Graduate view
LLM International Sports Law in Practice, 2018 graduate Hannah Pike

'I learnt from highly experienced law practitioners on this course, and received exceptional support. I am now studying a legal practice course in pursuit of a career as a sports lawyer.'

Hannah Pike, LLM International Sports Law in Practice, 2018 graduate

How you learn

At Sheffield Hallam, all our courses are designed to engage you with the world and challenge you to think in new ways. You’ll get to collaborate with others, and you’ll be taught in a supportive environment where you can thrive. 

This course gives you the skills, knowledge and confidence to be able to effectively advise and represent clients in complex sport-related disputes. You’ll gain expertise in the practice and procedure before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), FIFA's  Football Tribunal, the National Anti-Doping Panel in the UK and other disciplinary courts and tribunals.

You’ll experience a high quality, supportive and intensive learning environment. The overall approach emphasises knowledge and understanding in policy, procedure and practice in sports law, while enhancing your intellectual and employability skills to postgraduate level.  

You learn through:

  • Lectures  
  • Guided reading  
  • Seminars 
  • Peer support and reflection 
  • Workshops  
  • Student presentations 
  • Independent learning  
  • Reflection and evaluation 

Course topics 

You’ll explore core topics including commercial regulation and contractual obligations in sport,, sport finance, and international sport marketing and sponsorship. You’ll also gain experience while completing a business consultancy project (via business consultancy or dissertation). 

In addition to these core topics, you’ll have the opportunity to shape your learning journey by selecting elective topics – from anti-doping law to football law. This tailored approach means you can focus on specific areas within the sports industry that match your career objectives and personal interests.

You’ll benefit from small group teaching and one-to-one support, developing peer-supported investigative and analytical approaches to the issues you explore. In groups you’ll produce research reports and draft legal documents for the preparation of litigation.  

The course also provides opportunities for formative assessment and feedback – a key method for the clinical nature of the course, providing the vocational and employability skills you’ll need in the industry. 

Course support

You’ll be supported in your learning journey towards highly skilled, graduate level employment through several key areas. These include:

  • Access to our unique student support triangle to help with your personal, academic and career development.
  • Access to our Skills Centre with one to ones, webinars and online resources, where you can get help with planning and structuring your assignments.
  • Industry-specific employability activities such as live projects, learning in simulated environments and networking opportunities.

Course leaders and tutors

Dr Gregory Ioannidis
Dr Gregory Ioannidis
Course Leader

I am a sports lawyer with expertise in anti-doping litigation. I joined Sheffield Hallam University in 2014 as a senior lecturer in law.

Applied learning

The course places a special emphasis on the development of professional and transferable key skills, preparing you for future employment. 

Networking opportunities

The course is designed in a manner which creates unique and unparalleled expertise in the practice of sports law. The eminent sports lawyers teaching on the course – and the strong professional links of the course with major stakeholders in the field – create unique employment opportunities for the students (for example, placements in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games). 

Work placements

With several placement opportunities, students can transfer their knowledge, skills and expertise immediately into a professional setting. 

These may include internships and shadowing opportunities (at home and abroad, including the UK, USA, South Africa, Switzerland, Germany, Greece and in countries that organise the Olympic Games) with anti-doping agencies, sport governing bodies, agents’ firms, football clubs, basketball clubs, and others. 

Previous students have secured placements with prestigious organisations such as the Olympics Pro Bono Legal Team, Law Offices of Howard Jacobs and ProSport International.

The course offers:

  • Development of both work-based and work-related learning modules in conjunction with industry partners 
  • The development of simulation modules that draw out high level employability skills within a safe environment  
  • The use of employability mentors for graduate students  
  • The utilisation of a wider range of staff who can embed employability skills into the curriculum.

More specifically, the underpinning rationale for this course is to prepare students for work in the field of sports law and associated careers. The purpose of this focus is to help students to develop transferable attributes that aid their career development in other arenas. The applied and clinical nature of this course means that students will be working with practitioners from the field of sports law throughout their period of study. This includes  

  • Teaching input from sports law practitioners. 
  • Monitoring and review of case studies.
  • Active engagement with live and simulated cases.
  • Placement, internship, shadowing, and networking opportunities.

Future careers

This course prepares you for a career in: 

  • Anti-doping law 
  • Football law 
  • Sport governance
  • Sport administration
  • Sport agency and consultancy (in marketing and practice in law)
  • Sports law 

Previous graduates of this course have gone on to work for: 

  • Barnsley FC
  • Celtic FC
  • Manchester City FC
  • Nottingham Forest FC
  • The Football Association
  • Prosport International (South Africa)
  • The FA (Football Association)
  • UK Anti-Doping
  • UK Golf
  • The Olympic Games
  • Harry Drury Solicitors (UK), 
  • Highbridge Law Firm (Denmark)
  • Sports Law Expert (UK and USA)

Where will I study?

You study this course online from any location


Equipment and facilities

This course is delivered exclusively online. 

We use dedicated online platforms designed for effective teaching, along with a plethora of electronic library resources, live and recorded sessions, and weekly one-to-one training sessions with the tutors.

Entry requirements

All students

A 2:2 degree or above in Law, Business, Sports Science or a related degree.

Relevant work experience will be considered.

You also need to provide two satisfactory references.

If English is not your first language you will need an IELTS 6.5 score with a minimum of 6.0 in writing and 5.5 in all other skill areas or equivalent. If your English language skill is currently below IELTS 6.5 or equivalent we recommend you consider a Sheffield Hallam University Pre-sessional English course which will enable you to achieve an equivalent English score.

If you do not have such academic qualifications we may consider your application individually, based on your personal, professional and work experience, and other formal qualifications. You may also be able to claim credit points which can reduce the amount of time it takes to complete your qualification at Sheffield Hallam. Find out more

Additional information for EU/International students

If you are an International or non-UK European student, you can find out more about the country specific qualifications we accept on our international qualifications page.

For details of English language entry requirements (IELTS), please see the information for 'All students'.


Modules studied may differ depending on when you start your course.

Modules

Important notice: The structure of this course is periodically reviewed and enhanced to provide the best possible learning experience for our students and ensure ongoing compliance with any professional, statutory and regulatory body standards. Module structure, content, delivery and assessment may change, but we expect the focus of the course and the learning outcomes to remain as described above. Following any changes, updated module information will be published on this page.

Modules studied may differ depending on when you start your course.

Final year

Compulsory modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Business Consultancy Project (By Consultancy Or Dissertation)
Credits 60
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Commercial Regulation And Contractual Obligations In Sport
Credits 30
Assessment Coursework(100%)
International Sports Marketing And Sponsorship
Credits 30
Assessment Coursework(100%)
Sports Finance
Credits 30
Assessment Coursework(100%)

Elective modules

Module
Credits
Assessment
Anti-Doping Law
Credits 30
Assessment Practical(100%)
Football Law
Credits 30
Assessment Practical(100%)

Fees and funding

Home students

Our tuition fee for UK students starting distance learning study in 2025/26 is £10,620 for the course. The tuition fee displayed above is for the full course. If the full course is more than one year in duration, the fee will be divided into annual payments which will then be rounded. This may mean the total fee you pay is slightly higher than the fee stated above. If you take a break in study or have to re-take part of the course, you may also be charged an additional fee and will be notified of this at the time. Our tuition fee for UK students starting part-time study in 2025/26 is £5,310 per year.

If you are studying an undergraduate course, postgraduate pre-registration course or postgraduate research course over more than one academic year then your tuition fees may increase in subsequent years in line with Government regulations or UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) published fees. More information can be found in our terms and conditions under student fees regulations.

International students

Our tuition fee for International/EU students starting distance learning study in 2025/26 is £10,995 for the course. The tuition fee displayed above is for the full course. If the full course is more than one year in duration, the fee will be divided into annual payments which will then be rounded. This may mean the total fee you pay is slightly higher than the fee stated above. If you take a break in study or have to re-take part of the course, you may also be charged an additional fee and will be notified of this at the time. Our tuition fee for International/EU students starting part-time study in 2025/26 is £5,500 per year.

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Postgraduate student loans

Up to £11,222 available for Home students on most masters courses.

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Additional course costs

The links below allow you to view estimated general course additional costs, as well as costs associated with key activities on specific courses. These are estimates and are intended only as an indication of potential additional expenses. Actual costs can vary greatly depending on the choices you make during your course.

General course additional costs

Additional costs for Sheffield Institute of Law and Justice (PDF, 141.3KB)

Legal information

Any offer of a place to study is subject to your acceptance of the University’s Terms and Conditions and Student Regulations.

 

How do I apply?

You apply for this course via our online application form.

You can also use the application form above to apply for future years of entry.

Not ready to apply just yet?

Why not come to our next open day? Open days are the perfect place to talk to staff and students, visit our campuses and get all the information you need. Alternatively, feel free to ask us a question.

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Why choose us?

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Teaching

We are Gold rated in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) for the outstanding quality of our teaching and student outcomes

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Accommodation

We guarantee to find you an affordable place to live that’s close to campus and comes with all bills included

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Employment

95% of our UK graduates are in work or further study 15 months after graduating (2021/22 Graduate Outcomes Survey)

Where next?

Find out more about Sheffield Hallam's postgraduate opportunities and community.

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You can chat to teaching and admissions staff, view our facilities and learn more about your funding options.

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Information for international students

Information for international students including entry requirements by country and funding.

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