2026 Academic White Paper Session

We are excited to announce the fifth Annual Academic Paper Section of the 2026 Sports Lawyers Association (SLA) Conference, which will be held on May 13. Presenters will then attend the remainder of the SLA conference that will take place May 14 - 16, 2026 at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk in Chicago, Illinois.

The purpose of the academic section of SLA is to bring industry and the academy together and to introduce SLA membership to the timely research conducted on sport law topics.

The deadline to submit is 11:59 pm Eastern on March 31, 2026. Papers (i.e., published, accepted, or submitted work and works in progress short of a completed draft) will be peer-reviewed based on their relevance and contribution to the field of sports law. All submissions should be in PDF format and sent to Thomas Baker at tab3@uga.edu.

The review committee will make its selections on or before April 13, 2026. All presenters whose papers have been selected for inclusion will be named in the agenda and must register (and pay the appropriate registration fee) for the 2026 SLA Conference. All accepted papers will be posted in the SLA mobile app.

We hope to see you all in Chicago, Illinois for #SLAC26!

Thomas Baker
Academic Section Head