Player image in professional sport: licence scope, advertising and contract end

A club may be allowed to use a player image for a team announcement and still need a separate approval for a sponsor’s advertising campaign. The scope of an image licence depends on purpose, medium, territory, duration, editing and the businesses involved. A player contract should describe these points so that the planned use can be checked.

This also applies to merchandising and to content that remains online after the contract ends. Section 78 of the Austrian Copyright Act protects the legitimate interests of the person shown. Contractual terms, consent and the actual publication therefore have to be read together.

Several legal positions meet in professional sport. The person shown may control the conditions under which the image can be published. The photographer may hold rights in the specific photograph. The club may be the campaign partner while a sponsor or agency carries out the publication. The agreement should keep these levels distinct instead of reducing them to one general image-rights formula.

A licence describes the permitted use. It should identify the image or permitted image group, the publication purpose and the channels. This may cover a club website. It does not automatically create a licence for product advertising, paid ads or fan products.

The general interpretation rules of the Austrian General Civil Code apply to the agreement. Section 914 refers to the parties’ intention and fair commercial practice. Section 915 contains supplementary rules where uncertainty remains. The more precisely the contract describes the later use, the less the assessment depends on statements made after the campaign has started.

Purpose is the first point to review. Club information, matchday communication, sponsor advertising and merchandising pursue different aims. The contract should therefore state whether the image is used editorially, to promote the club, for a named product or for a joint campaign.

The media follow. They may include a website, app, poster, stadium screen, television, social media platform, online ad, packaging or printed fan product. A transfer to a creative agency, platform operator or retailer should also be addressed where planned. A reference to all media can be too broad and may require interpretation in the individual case.

Territory and duration complete the scope. A campaign may be limited to Austria or distributed internationally. A single match report has a different practical reach from an image that remains available in an online shop. The contract should also address repetitions, paid distribution, archiving and removal after the licence period.

An advertising campaign requires clarity on who may use the player image and to whom approval is given. The club may run its own campaign. A sponsor may need a right of use. An agency may edit the material and deliver it to several platforms. Each role should be covered by the agreement or a supplementary approval.

The combination of image and advertising claim also matters. A neutral portrait in a match report has a different context from a statement about quality, performance or a product. The planned copy and image should therefore be approved together. This reduces the risk of a use that conflicts with the player’s personal or professional interests.

Competing sponsors require a clear allocation. A player may have a personal cooperation while the club launches a campaign with a competitor. Review product category, exclusivity, duration, approval procedure and whether specific campaigns can be refused for objective reasons. General exclusivity should be limited to its actual scope.

Merchandising raises different questions from a single social media post. The player image may appear on shirts, trading cards, posters, packaging or digital products. The review should cover product, design, production period, quantity, distribution, territory and remaining stock. Name, shirt number, signature or voice may also form part of the use alongside the image.

Remuneration should be traceable to the agreed use. It may be a fixed payment, a share, separate campaign remuneration or a combination. The contract should state which uses are covered by the basic remuneration and when a separate payment or account is required. An unclear lump sum makes later review difficult when further media or products are added.

The account needs a clear basis. This may include an approval list, campaign budget, sales report or production statement. Which documents are owed depends on the agreement. Mentioning a player image does not by itself establish a particular accounting method.

The contract end does not automatically answer every visibility question. An old match report may be an archive while a new advertising campaign starts after the relationship has ended. An online shop may sell remaining stock even though production has stopped. Original approval, actual use and the end date therefore have to be reviewed together.

A continuing effect can be agreed expressly. It should distinguish archives, already produced items, running ads and new publications. It is also useful to address removal from paid campaigns, deactivation of shop pages and material held by agencies or platforms. Each category should have a clear end point.

Section 78 of the Austrian Copyright Act remains relevant even where consent was given earlier. Publication of a portrait may not infringe the legitimate interests of the person shown. Whether a specific archive or continued use is permissible depends on content, context, agreement and the circumstances of publication.

An approval should identify the image or video. It should also record copy, layout, channel, period, territory and third parties. An email approval can be sufficient when the version is saved clearly and the responsible person is known. A general message in a chat often leaves open which image and campaign were meant.

Editing belongs in the review as well. Cropping, retouching, captions, translations, combinations with club marks or presentation with a product can change the impression of an image. Approval of a team photograph is therefore not necessarily approval of an individual portrait designed for an advertisement.

The club should keep an approval list. It can record image, purpose, medium, territory, start, end, editing, sponsor, agency and accounting. The list does not replace the contract. It shows whether the planned campaign stays within the agreed licence.

For underage players, check who can give effective consent and which specific purpose it covers. Consent to take part in a team photograph does not automatically cover a long-term advertising campaign. The purpose should be understandable to the player and legal representative.

Team images also raise the question whether all people shown are covered by the same approval. A club should not infer unlimited individual use from consent given for the team. Images from private moments, sensitive situations or activities outside the match setting require particular care.

The initial record can be simple: person shown, responsible contracting party, specific purpose and planned reach. If the campaign changes, obtain a new approval or review the existing agreement against the change.

A sound review starts with the full player contract, amendments, annexes and separate approvals. Add the image or video, copy, layout, campaign plan, sponsor agreement, agency instruction and planned channels. For merchandising, include the product design, sales territory, production period and accounting documents.

If the use has already started, save the relevant URLs, screenshots, publication times and information about paid distribution. In a contract-end situation, add the end date, termination agreement, existing archives, shop pages and remaining stock. This creates a chronology that separates old publication from new use.

For a different contractual issue, the article on the relegation clause in a professional contract provides a useful distinction. For ending a representation relationship, the article on the agent agreement after a transfer addresses another contract type. Neither replaces a review of the image licence.

Is a general marketing-rights clause enough for an advertising campaign?
There is no general yes or no. Purpose, medium, sponsor, territory, duration, editing and approval should match the campaign. Club communication may be assessed differently from paid product advertising.

Can a club keep using a player image after the contract ends?
That depends on the original agreement, the content and the continued use. Archives, an online shop, old match reports and a new advertising campaign have to be assessed separately.

How should remuneration for image rights be agreed?
The contract should state which uses are included in basic remuneration and when a separate payment or account is due. For merchandising, product, distribution and the accounting basis are particularly important.

What should be checked when a sponsor changes?
Review exclusivity, product category, duration, approval and the player’s personal cooperation. Approval for one sponsor does not automatically transfer to another.

Start by organising the agreement and describing each intended use separately: image, purpose, medium, territory, duration, editing and third parties. Compare this list with the licence clause and existing approvals. This shows whether the campaign or merchandising is covered by the contract.

When a contract ends, record old publications, archives, shop pages and new campaigns separately. Also review remuneration, accounting and removal from paid media. Section 78 of the Austrian Copyright Act and the interpretation rules in sections 914 and 915 of the Austrian General Civil Code provide the framework, but they do not replace an assessment of the individual case.

You can receive new articles and legal updates from the firm through BRANDaktuelle Rechtsnews. If you would like a licence clause, campaign or post-contract use reviewed, provide the player contract with amendments, the concrete design and a short chronology. Mag. Bernhard Brandauer, Rechtsanwalt, will clarify the next sensible steps with you.