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Specialist sports law firm, Couchmans LLP are proud to have advised the International Tennis Federation (ITF) on the tender process and deal for official data rights in respect of over 90,000 ITF tennis matches – the biggest single package of official data rights in world sport.

Following a competitive tender process, the ITF decided to extend and expand its agreement with existing partner Sportradar AG. The renewed deal which runs to 2021 also sees Sportradar appointed as the ITF’s preferred streaming partner for certain ITF Pro Circuit events.

The project saw the ITF draw upon expert lawyers from Couchmans’ sports data, technology and media rights teams to tackle a complex range of legal, commercial and operational issues involved in cementing the partnership.

Describing Couchmans’ role in the deal, Andrew Walker, Commercial Director of the International Tennis Federation, said:

“Couchmans’ specialist legal and commercial acumen has been invaluable for us. They have truly helped transform the ITF’s data offering over the past few years.”

Steven Burton, Head of Sports Data at Couchmans LLP, said:

“Four years ago we helped the ITF create its official data strategy and it is great to see how this has brought new revenues and a host of related benefits to the federation.

“The unprecedented level of demand we saw for the official data rights during the recent tender is testament to the great job the ITF has done to date, and further illustrates the vitality and growth of the sports data market more generally.

“The ITF’s use of data to generate new revenues, improve integrity measures and raise the profile of their National Associations and tournaments is something we expect many international sports federations will be looking to follow in the coming years.”

The announcement comes just weeks after Couchmans’ Head of Sports Data, Steven Burton was recognised by the leading independent legal directory, Chambers & Partners, as “the foremost legal authority in the area of sports data”.

About Couchmans LLP

Couchmans LLP (couchmansllp.com) is a leading specialist sports law firm based in London, providing legal, commercial and strategic advice to sports federations, leagues and athletes internationally. Couchmans’ Sports Data team has implemented data collection, exploitation, licensing schemes for a wide range of sports leagues and federations including The International Tennis Federation, The ATP World Tour, La Liga and Football DataCo (The Premier League, English Football League and Scottish Professional Football League). The aggregate value of official data deals upon which Couchmans has advised in recent years now exceeds several hundred million US dollars.