Matt Hanson

Matt Hanson is a Senior Associate in the Sports Group, based in London and specialising in a wide range of commercial and contractual issues. His primary practice area is Sports Law.

While he primarily focuses on the sport sector, he also has considerable experience advising clients in the media and tech sectors, spanning five years at his previous firm, one of the largest international law firms in the world.

In particular, he advises on media rights tenders and agreements, media regulation, sponsorship agreements, service agreements, licensing and merchandising deals, joint venture arrangements and a wide array of contractual and commercial issues generally. His experience covers football, rugby, cricket, motor racing, athletics and esports, and he has represented clubs, governing bodies, leagues, athletes, agents, rightsholders and brands.

Over the course of his legal career, he has undertaken various client secondments. Most recently, he worked at The Football Association, firstly helping the commercial legal team with sponsorship, media rights and other work, and subsequently working on the bid for UEFA Euro 2028 to be hosted in the UK and Ireland.

During his training contract, he spent six months in the distribution arm of ITV, the UK's largest commercial broadcaster, which helped cement his understanding of the media sector. He also undertook a remote secondment with the stand-alone media platform owned and operated by a prominent global sporting body.

In addition, he worked in the Barcelona office of his previous firm for three months, developing relations with several Spanish clients and the national media regulator. He speaks French and Spanish as a result of his time living and working in France, Canada (Montreal), Spain and Nicaragua.