Lecturers

Christopher FLANAGAN’s profile

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Christopher FLANAGAN

Head of Legal at Future plc

Christopher Flanagan is Head of Legal at Future plc and an internationally recognised academic and PhD by publication in sports law, with a particular focus on the financial regulation of professional football. His career bridges in-house legal leadership and top-level academic research, positioning him as a thought leader in the complexities of club licensing, costs controls, and financial governance in European football.

Academic and Professional Profile

Christopher Flanagan has held senior legal counsel roles for leading companies in the media, entertainment, and sports sectors, notably as Head of Legal at Future plc and Sole Regional Legal Counsel (UK) at TEG Pty Ltd. Parallel to his in-house responsibilities, he serves as Associate Editor of the International Sports Law Journal and has taught and published widely on sports law regulation, with his works referenced in leading journals, textbooks, and at international conferences.

Expertise in Financial Regulation and Club Licensing

Christopher Flanagan is best known for his expertise in the financial regulation of football, club licensing, and the operation of cost controls such as UEFA’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) regime. His seminal articles have critically examined the legal structure and challenges of FFP, the compatibility of these rules with EU law, and their practical effects on football club management. He has dissected UEFA’s break-even requirements and the workings of the Club Financial Control Body, highlighting both regulatory progress and tension with EU competition law.

Licensing and Cost Control Thought Leadership

Through research, publications, and consultancy, Christopher Flanagan has become a leading authority on how club licensing and financial monitoring regimes work to ensure club sustainability and competitive balance in Europe. His work explores both the letter of regulations—such as the evolution of UEFA’s licensing and sanction framework—and broader policy questions about effectiveness, loopholes, and avenues for reform.

Impactful Communicator and Advocate

As a writer and editor, Christopher Flanagan is praised for making complex legal topics accessible to practitioners and fans alike, bolstering understanding of why and how financial governance matters for the future of European football. His balanced and critical insights continue to shape the academic and professional discourse on licensing and costs controls across major football jurisdictions.

Excellence meets
Expertise

The combination of the best academic professors and renowned active experts in Law, Economics and Geopolitics in sports is the ideal formula for you to be in contact with professional and up-to-date reality.

The pedagogical skills of the lecturers of this program, together with their knowledge and professional profile, are key to their selection in this educational team. And they ensure you the best possible training.

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This Executive Program is NOT about packaging up information. This Executive Program is about career transformation and game-changing results.

The WHY of this Executive Program is: Master the key rules of the sports industry. Use them. Or change them.

It will equip you with a sense of anticipation—the ability to discern what is likely to come next—enabling you to stay ahead of the curve and lead rather than follow.

The curriculum has been carefully identified and developed to cover the knowledge and skills participants need to achieve their professional goals in the sports industry.

The lecturers are not just university professors or academics but also and mainly, each one in his field, among the most respected, renowned and successful professionals in the sports industry. They practise what they teach, at the highest level, every day.

The lecturers represent all stakeholders in the sports industry which ensures you learn all sides of law, economics and geopolitics in sport, and not only the one inspired by the interests of sports governing bodies. You learn all points of view.

Hence, our aim is to provide you with the tools that will enable you to learn more objectively, to think more accurately and to act more effectively. Our final ambition is to enable you to flourish in a complex but exciting sector.

If this is what you are looking for, this Executive Program is right for you.

We think so and have designed it to be so. There are many “masters in sports law”, which usually include one economics subject or another. Some of these masters are excellent. But those that are worthwhile generally last one academic year and represent a considerable investment of time and money.

“Law, Economics and Geopolitics of Professional Sports: How to be successful, globally and locally” is a very high-quality, time and cost-effective alternative to the traditional approach: in 44 hours of curated online Lectures and 4 hours of Live Group Sessions, world-class lecturers and key players in the sector will highlight and summarize for you the essentials of their knowledge and expertise.

In addition, at the end of each module, they will provide you with a detailed list of the best readings and sources, which will enable you - if you wish - to delve deeper into a particular aspect of the subject.

In short, in 48 hours of curated, dense and practical Masterclasses, you will acquire a comprehensive and effective knowledge of law, economics and geopolitics applied to professional sport. At the highest level. Faster.

This Executive Program has been designed so that each participant has strong chances to reach their desired end outcome:

  • Get a job within the sports industry
  • Obtain a senior/executive level position
  • Get a salary increase
  • Manage people and projects
  • Change job function/occupation
  • Change job industry
  • Be self-employed/entrepreneur
  • Expand network

As long-time professionals in this sector, we have already gone through these challenges and know from firsthand what is necessary to succeed in them.

  1. Career Trajectory

One way this Executive Program provides a return on investment is the expansion and acceleration of your career. The program provides the hard and soft skills to be an effective contributor and leader in sports business. You’ll learn how to solve complex problems and make decisions. These skills are highly valued in leaders and can not only help you land roles with increasing responsibility but lead your team through difficult challenges.

  1. Earning Potential

Along with career acceleration comes increased earning potential. There’s an investment on your part, but the return on investment from a purely financial standpoint can be compelling. Especially in an industry that’s used to managing important amounts of money. The program sets you up to earn more than you would without it.

  1. Connections

Finally, this Executive Program provides immense value in the form of connections. It is a transformative experience. Any time you go through a transformative experience with others, it creates bonds that will last a long time. The connections you’ll make in this Executive Program, both with participants and lecturers, can enhance your personal life and lead to professional opportunities to advance your career.

So yes, if you aim to accelerate your career and become a well-connected professional in the sports industry, this Executive Program will definitely help.

If you don’t enjoy the program, you will enjoy our love it or leave it unconditional money-back guarantee! We are so confident that this Executive Program does what it is supposed to do for you that if you eventually decide that it is not for you, no hard feelings. If you are not happy, we are not happy.

For any reason whatsoever, if you want to cancel your inscription and get 100% of your money back, you just have to let us know by email before starting the fourth module of the program.

We will pay you back without asking questions and without conditions.