Sports criminal lawyer
Defence and assistance in criminal cases with a sports background
A criminal file in sport rarely stands on its own. Next to the investigation by the public prosecutor there is often a disciplinary case at the federation, a reaction from the club and interest from the press. A statement given without advice damages your position in both procedures at once. We act for players, coaches, directors, agents, clubs and federations, and for victims who join the case as a civil party.
Our firm works from Ghent, Brussels, Antwerp and Hasselt and appears before all Belgian investigating and trial courts. Sports files rarely stop at the border. Money moves through foreign companies, witnesses live abroad, and FIFA, UEFA or the CAS in Lausanne run their own procedure alongside the criminal one. We handle that international part of the file and keep the defence on both tracks consistent.
What a sports criminal lawyer does for you
We assist you from the first police interview through to the judgment and the appeal.
Match-fixing and sports fraud
Defence against suspicions of manipulated matches, irregular betting patterns and reports from the Belgian national platform. We review the betting and telecom data in the file, challenge weak chains of evidence and prepare you for interviews by detectives and integrity officers.
Bribery and corruption
Assistance with charges of private bribery around transfers, team selection, tenders and sponsorship deals. We test every payment against the contracts and the regulations, and show where a commission or fee covers a genuine service that was actually delivered.
Money laundering and financial fraud
Cases about agent commissions, cash payments, offshore companies and reports by the Belgian financial intelligence unit. We ask for the release of seized accounts and assets, and defend you against the confiscation claimed by the prosecutor.
Violence on and around the pitch
Assault during or after a match, including cases recorded on camera. We defend the accused, and we also represent victims who join the proceedings as a civil party and want their injury and loss compensated.
Hooliganism and the Football Act
Administrative fines from the Football Unit of the federal Home Affairs department, stadium bans and perimeter measures after incidents at a match. We file your written defence with the official and lodge an appeal with the police court.
Drug offences
Possession, use or supply of controlled substances in a sports setting, from a search at your home to a check at an event. We test whether the findings were lawfully obtained and argue for suspension of sentence or probation where possible.
How a case runs
Interview, arrest and investigation
You have the right to consult a lawyer before the first police interview and to have one present during it. After an arrest the investigating judge decides within forty-eight hours. Call us before you give any statement.
Council chamber, court and appeal
The council chamber decides whether the file goes to the criminal court or ends without prosecution. The deadline to appeal a judgment is thirty days. Against a sanction from the Football Unit you have one month.
Criminal and disciplinary tracks
The federation, the Belgian FA, FIFA or UEFA often examine the same facts, with appeal to the CAS in Lausanne. Keep your messages and documents, give no statement to your club or the media, and let both tracks be coordinated.
Frequently asked questions
I am being interviewed by the police. Do I have the right to a lawyer?
Yes. You have the right to consult a lawyer before the first police interview and to have one present during it. You also have the right to remain silent. Answering questions about contracts, payments or messages without preparation fixes a version that is hard to correct later. Call before you give any statement.
How long can I be held after an arrest?
After an arrest the investigating judge decides within forty-eight hours. The council chamber then settles the procedure: it sends the file to the criminal court or ends the case without prosecution.
There is also a disciplinary case at my federation. What now?
The two procedures run alongside each other and each keeps its own pace. What you say in one can surface in the other. Align your defence across both before you give a statement, and ask for the disciplinary hearing to be postponed where that helps. Give no statement to your club or to the press in the meantime.
Within what period must I appeal?
The deadline to appeal a judgment is thirty days. Against a sanction from the Football Unit you have one month, with an appeal to the police court. Those deadlines expire without warning, so have them checked as soon as the decision reaches you.
My phone and my accounts have been seized. Do I get them back?
A request for their return runs through the investigating judge. Make sure first that you know exactly what was taken, and ask for a copy of what you need to keep working. In an investigation into fraud or match-fixing, phones, computers and accounts are often taken together.
Sports we handle this domain in
Football ↗
Everest Sports Law is your football lawyer in Belgium for clubs
Combat sports ↗
A combat sports lawyer in Belgium for judo, karate, boxing, MMA
Gymnastics ↗
A gymnastics lawyer in Belgium for gymnasts, coaches, clubs and federations: disciplinary
Fitness, Bodybuilding & Powerlifting ↗
Charged after a doping control at a fitness centre? Our doping lawyer
Judo ↗
A judo lawyer in Belgium for judoka, clubs and federations: selection, disciplinary
Badminton ↗
A badminton lawyer in Belgium for players, clubs and federations: tournament entry