Ethics Cases | Sport
Real cases. Real decisions.
Ethics in sport, for practitioners and classrooms.
Each case pairs a sourced, neutral account (summary, timeline, issues, stakeholders) with practical lessons for people running sports organizations and discussion questions for courses.
Browse cases Suggest a caseAthletic departments, leagues, teams, and foundations: a "Practical takeaway" box on every case gives you governance and risk lessons you can use.
Professors and students in sports ethics and sport management: timelines, stakeholder maps, discussion questions, and sources you can cite.
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Baylor University and the Football Sexual Assault Scandal
An outside review found fundamental failures in how Baylor handled reports of sexual violence, including in football. The coach was fired and the president removed.
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Brett Favre and the Mississippi Welfare Funds Scandal
Mississippi welfare (TANF) money went to projects including a volleyball facility Brett Favre championed. He faces a civil suit but has not been criminally charged.
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Caster Semenya and Testosterone Eligibility Rules
A two-time Olympic 800m champion challenged World Athletics testosterone limits for athletes with DSDs at CAS, in Swiss courts, and at Europe's human rights court.
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Colin Kaepernick: Anthem Protest and Collusion Grievance
An NFL quarterback's anthem protest against police brutality and racial injustice, his unsigned free agency, and the confidential settlement of his collusion grievance.
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Donald Sterling: Racist Remarks and the Forced Clippers Sale
After a recording of the Clippers owner's racist remarks surfaced, the NBA banned him for life, fined him $2.5 million, and pushed through a $2 billion sale.
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FIFA Corruption: The 2015 U.S. Indictments
U.S. prosecutors charged FIFA officials and sports-marketing executives with racketeering and bribery. The case led to Sepp Blatter's fall and governance reforms.
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Houston Astros Sign-Stealing Scandal
How the 2017 Astros used a center-field camera feed to decode and relay opposing signs, and how MLB investigated and disciplined the club.
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Jeremy Bloom v. NCAA: Endorsements, Eligibility, and the Pre-NIL Era
A world-champion moguls skier lost his Colorado football eligibility after taking ski endorsements, years before NCAA name, image, and likeness (NIL) reform.
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Lance Armstrong and the U.S. Postal Service Team Doping Conspiracy
USADA's 2012 case against Lance Armstrong: a lifetime ban, seven Tour de France titles stripped, and a long-running, organized doping cover-up.
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Larry Nassar, USA Gymnastics, and Systemic Safeguarding Failure
How a team doctor abused athletes for years while reports to USA Gymnastics, Michigan State, the U.S. Olympic Committee, and the FBI failed to stop him.
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Michael Vick and the Bad Newz Kennels Dogfighting Case
An NFL quarterback's federal conviction for running a dogfighting operation, his prison sentence, and his conditional reinstatement to the league.
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New Orleans Saints "Bountygate"
NFL findings that the Saints ran a pay-for-injury "bounty" program, the resulting record discipline, and the appeal that vacated the player suspensions.
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Ohio State "Tattoo-Gate" and Jim Tressel
Ohio State players traded memorabilia for cash and tattoos, and head coach Jim Tressel concealed what he knew. He resigned, and the NCAA imposed a bowl ban.
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Oscar Pistorius: Prosthetics Eligibility and the Killing of Reeva Steenkamp
A double-amputee sprinter won the right to race able-bodied athletes at the Olympics, then was convicted of murdering Reeva Steenkamp.
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Penn State and the Sandusky Abuse Scandal: Institutional Failure
How Penn State leaders responded to reports about former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, and the criminal, NCAA, and federal consequences that followed.
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Pete Rose: Betting on Baseball and the Lifetime Ban
Baseball's hits leader accepted a lifetime ban in 1989 over gambling, admitted betting on baseball in 2004, and was removed from the ineligible list after his death.
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Qatar 2022 World Cup and Migrant Labor
How hosting the 2022 World Cup focused global attention on migrant workers' conditions in Qatar and led to labor reforms whose enforcement remains disputed.
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Ray Rice and the NFL's Domestic Violence Policy
How the NFL's initial two-game suspension of Ray Rice, and the later release of the elevator video, forced changes to the league's Personal Conduct Policy.
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Russian State-Sponsored Doping and the WADA Response
Investigations found an institutional doping and sample-tampering scheme in Russian sport, including at Sochi 2014, leading to years of sanctions and legal disputes.
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Ryan Lochte and the Rio 2016 Gas Station Incident
An Olympic swimmer's false account of a robbery at gunpoint in Rio, the diplomatic fallout, and his suspension and loss of sponsors.
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The 1919 Black Sox Scandal
Eight White Sox players were accused of conspiring with gamblers to lose the 1919 World Series. A jury acquitted them; baseball's first commissioner banned them for life.
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The NFL Concussion Litigation and Settlement
Thousands of retired players sued the NFL over concussion risks. The result was an uncapped class settlement and a later fight over "race-norming."
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Tim Donaghy and the NBA Betting Scandal
An NBA referee bet on games, including games he officiated, and passed inside information to gamblers. He pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2007.
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Tonya Harding and the Attack on Nancy Kerrigan
The 1994 attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan, organized by people close to rival Tonya Harding, and the criminal and sporting consequences that followed.
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UNC "Paper Classes": The African and Afro-American Studies Scandal
For nearly two decades, UNC–Chapel Hill offered irregular "paper classes" with no instruction. Athletes were heavily enrolled, yet the NCAA found no violations.
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