Dr Cem Abanazir
Dr Cem Abanazir
Lecturer
My profile
Biography
I am a Turkey-qualified lawyer (non-practising) with experience in different aspects of law. I started my career as a legal counsel and disciplinary inspector at the Turkish Football Federation. My duties mainly consisted of regulatory and disciplinary oversight in the professional football leagues in Turkey. I also dealt with cases relating to sporting integrity. After six years, I decided to further my studies and change my career path. The change led to an LLM in Intellectual Property and the Digital Economy from the University of Glasgow. My previous exposure to the sports industry guided me in my PhD at Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona. My thesis focused on the intersection of law, human rights, freedom of expression, and philosophy within the context of sport.
My interest in sports law has resulted in the monograph ‘Political Expression in Sport: Transnational Challenges, Moral Defences’. The book focuses on the effects of sports associations’ moral and legal stances on athletes, spectators, and audiences, with the help of political philosophy, sociology of law, legal theory, ethics, and the legal and philosophical aspects of human rights. Moreover, as a gamer/academic, I have written extensively on law and governance in esports. Inclusion, social justice and equity are also recurring themes in my academic work.
Interests and expertise
- Sport and human rights
- Sports law
- Freedom of expression and its limits
- Globalisation and transnational (legal) regimes
- Sport governance
- Intellectual property and sport
- Philosophy of sport and sport ethics
- esports
- Mega-events
Teaching
Preparing for Projects (Dissertation) - Level 6
Intellectual Property Law - Level 6
Sports Law: Regulating Players, Spectators and Stadiums - Level 5
Unit Leader: Sport Law (MSc Sport Business, Management & Policy) - Level 7
Research outputs
Books
2023 Political Expression in Sport: Transnational Challenges, Moral Defences. Routledge.
2022 Spor Hukukuna Giriş. [Introduction to Sports Law]Adalet Yayınevi.
Book Chapters
2024 ‘Law and Governance in a Complex Esports Society’ in Jenny, S.E, Besombes, N, Brock, T, Cote, T, and Scholz, T.M (eds), Routledge Handbook of Esports. Routledge.
2023 ‘The Olympic Movement and Esports Governance: Finding the Right Way of Cooperating for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion’ in Tjønndal, A (ed), Social issues in esports. Routledge.
2021 ‘La libertad de expresión en deporte: lo que está en juego’ in Pérez Triviño, J.L, and Carrio Sampedro, A (eds), Deporte, Derecho y Filosofía. Fontamara.
Articles in Journals
2024 ‘Normative Pluralism and Sporting Integrity’, Sport, Ethics and Philosophy, DOI: 10.1080/17511321.2024.2332577.
2021 ‘Of values and commercialisation: an exploration of esports’ place within the Olympic Movement’, Sport, Ethics, and Philosophy. Vol. 16:4, pp. 397-412. https://doi.org/10.1080/17511321.2021.1945669.
2019‘E-sport and the EU: the view from the English Bridge Union’, The International Sports Law Journal. Vol. 18:3-4, pp. 102-113, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40318-018-0139-6.
2019‘Institutionalisation in E-Sports’, Sport, Ethics, and Philosophy. Vol. 13:2, pp. 117-131, https://doi.org/10.1080/17511321.2018.1453538.
2018‘The Turkish Ordeal: Turkish Football Federation’s Stance Against the ‘Other’’, Fair Play. Revista de Filosofía, Ética y Derecho del Deporte. Vol. 11, pp. 42-57.
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Books (authored/edited/special issues)
Abanazir, C. Political Expression in Sport. Routledge.
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Chapters in books
Abanazir, C., Shinohara, T. (2025) 'Esports Law and Esports Governance.' In Jenny, S.E., Besombes, N., Brock, T., Cote, A.C., Scholz, T.M. (ed.) Routledge Handbook of Esports. London: Routledge, pp. 482-492.
Abanazir, S.C. (2022) 'The Olympic Movement and esports governance: Finding the right way of cooperating for diversity, equity, and inclusion.' Social Issues in Esports.
Abanazir, S.C. (2021) 'La libertad de expresión en deporte: lo que está en juego.' Deporte, Derecho y Filosofía. Fontamara,
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Journal articles
Abanazir, C. (2024) 'Normative pluralism and sporting integrity.' Sport, Ethics and Philosophy,
Abanazir, C. (2022) 'Of Values and Commercialisation: An Exploration of Esports’ Place within the Olympic Movement.' Sport, Ethics and Philosophy, 16(4) pp. 397-412.
Abanazir, C. (2019) 'Institutionalisation in E-Sports.' Sport, Ethics and Philosophy, 13(2) pp. 117-131.
Abanazir, C. (2019) 'E-sport and the EU: the view from the English Bridge Union.' International Sports Law Journal, 18(3-4) pp. 102-113.