India’s Sports Goods Sector: Turning Manufacturing Strength into Sporting Strength
India makes over 300 types of sporting goods and exported US$523 million worth in FY 2023-24, yet holds under 1% of a global trade worth more than US$65 billion. With the sector now under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, our paper sets out the scheme, certification framework and infrastructure that could change that.
Building a Responsible Gaming Ecosystem: Legal and Ethical Imperatives for India
India’s gaming sector has become a mainstream cultural and economic force, and the trust of players, parents, regulators and investors is now its most valuable currency. Our presentation sets out the legal risks operators face, the pillars of ethical practice and what India can take from the jurisdictions that lead on responsible gaming.
The National Sports Governance Act, 2025: Our Submission on the Draft Rules
On 15 October 2025 the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports released three sets of draft Rules under the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, for the National Sports Tribunal, National Sports Bodies and the National Sports Board. Our submission of 14 November 2025 welcomed them and recommended where the detail could be sharpened.
The PROG Act 2025, Part II: Bans, Penalties and the Industry’s Reckoning
Real money gaming made up 86% of the revenue of an Indian online gaming industry worth US$3.7 billion in 2024. Part II of our analysis of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 looks at what the ban covers, the penalties, the grey areas in the drafting and the constitutional questions it raises.
The PROG Act 2025, Part I: What India’s New Online Gaming Law Enables
The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 is India’s first central law on online gaming. Part I of our analysis covers what it enables: formal recognition of esports, space for social and educational games and a central Online Gaming Authority, together with the questions the drafting leaves open.
All Things Esports: India’s US$1.65 Billion Opportunity and the Road Ahead
Esports is a US$1.65 billion global industry with an audience of more than 500 million, and it now features on the Asian Games medal table. Our paper explains how the ecosystem works, why governing it differs from traditional sport, where India stands and what a practical national roadmap could include.
Play Games 24X7 v. State of Tamil Nadu: The Madras High Court Upholds Tamil Nadu’s Real Money Gaming Regulations
In June 2025 the Madras High Court upheld Tamil Nadu’s Real Money Games Regulations, including a midnight to 5 am login restriction, Aadhaar-based KYC and limits on playtime and stakes. Our case note sets out the challenge, the State’s defence, the ruling and what it meant for state regulation of online gaming at the time.
When Geopolitics Disrupts Sport: The Case for a Dedicated Contractual Clause
Force majeure and frustration protect a party that cannot perform. They offer far less to a party that can perform but, after a geopolitical event, is no longer willing to. Our paper makes the case for a dedicated geo-political clause in sports and gaming contracts and proposes language for one.
India’s Draft National Code Against Age Fraud in Sports: A Pioneering Step and How to Strengthen It
Most countries have no consolidated national law on age fraud in sport. India’s Draft National Code Against Age Fraud in Sports 2025 is a pioneering step, and our submission to the Ministry of 14 April 2025 welcomed it and recommended how its implementation could be strengthened.
Understanding India’s Khelo Bharat Niti (National Sports Policy) 2025: A Plain-Language Guide
Approved by the Union Cabinet on 1 July 2025, the Khelo Bharat Niti replaces the National Sports Policy of 2001 and builds on Khelo India and the Target Olympic Podium Scheme. Our plain-language guide explains what the policy says, what is new, who it affects and what will help it deliver.
India’s National Sports Governance Act, 2025: What It Means for Athletes, Federations and the Sector
More than 350 legal disputes were pending across Indian sports bodies when the National Sports Governance Bill, 2025 came before Parliament. Our overview explains the institutions the law creates, the governance standards it sets for federations and what it means for athletes.
Making the Business Case: How Indian Corporates Can Do More for Sport
Indian companies have spent heavily on sport for decades, most of it on cricket, yet training to promote sport receives less than 1% of total CSR spending. Our note sets out practical ways to bring more corporate investment into more sports, from CSR and public-private partnerships to adopt-a-sport programmes and lessons from abroad.
Our Submission on the National Sports Governance Bill, 2024
The draft National Sports Governance Bill, 2024 was the most significant attempt at structured governance reform in Indian sport in over a decade. Our submission to the Ministry of 10 November 2024 welcomed it and recommended where it could be clarified and strengthened.
Our Submission on the Draft National Sports Policy, 2024
The draft National Sports Policy 2024 set an ambitious vision for sport as a driver of excellence, economic growth and social development. Our submission to the Ministry of 27 October 2024 supported that vision and recommended the implementation detail that would help deliver it.
The Price of Running as a Woman: Sex Testing, DSD Regulations and Sporting Justice
Caster Semenya was born a woman, raised as a woman and identifies as a woman. In 2019 the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the IAAF rules that required her to lower her natural testosterone to run her events. Our paper traces the history of sex testing in sport and asks whether the law reached the right answer.
Should Doping Be a Crime? Our 2017 Opinion to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
In 2017 the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports sought our opinion on whether India should criminalise doping. We concluded that drafting a bill was a step in the right direction, but that awareness had to come first, and we set out how to build it.
What NADA Should Have Done Differently: Lessons from the Narsingh Yadav Case
Days before the Rio Olympics, a NADA hearing panel cleared wrestler Narsingh Yadav after two positive tests for metandienone, accepting that he had been sabotaged. Written at the time, our analysis identified the gaps in the process NADA followed. Weeks later, on appeal by WADA, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the decision and imposed a four-year ban.
Footballers, Brands and the Battle for Image Rights: Lessons from the UK
Image rights bring together intellectual property, tax and sports commerce. The UK has no codified image rights law, yet Premier League clubs and players built sophisticated structures around them. Our paper traces how the law developed, how clubs and players used image rights, and the tax and regulatory questions that followed.