As sport as a segment of social life becomes more and more popular and branched out, the need has arisen to regulate the rights and obligations of persons professionally engaged in sports by legal, i.e. imperative norms, all for the sake of protecting them as athletes, and the interests of the sports organization with which they are involved. he signs the employment contract, and in addition to the above, the public interest.
In 2021, the Law on Sports was adopted in Montenegro, which more closely prescribes the rights and obligations of participants in the sphere of sports, as a professional activity, and the same law represents the lex specialis, since the rights and obligations in this part are regulated by a contract called the Contract about working with a sports organization.
So, so far it is clear that the contract between a sports organization and a professional athlete establishes an employment relationship, which, however, is in many respects different from standard or “ordinary” employment contracts, as well as obligations arising from work and based on work prescribed by the Labor Law .
Bearing in mind what has been said so far, it is important to note that employment contracts with a sports organization can be based exclusively on a certain period of time, and for a maximum of three years, with the fact that after the passage of three years, a new employment relationship can be established, also for a maximum of the mentioned period, and so on as long as there is agreement of the will to conclude the contract.
Furthermore, an interesting topic regulated by the Law on Sports is the so-called Monthly allowance for life, so athletes with top representative results, after reaching 35 years of age, have the right to a monthly allowance for life.
Of course, an athlete with a top representative result means an athlete who, in accordance with the law, has been given such a status. For the sake of clarification, the status of an athlete with a top representative result is determined for an athlete if, as a member of the Montenegrin national team, he achieved, in individual or team competition, first, second or third place at the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, the only official world or European senior championship in a sports discipline that was or is on the program of the Olympic Games, that is, the Paralympic Games, that is, if he was chosen as the athlete of the year, and became a world or European champion, or a medal winner at a world or European senior championship.
According to the explanation, and bearing in mind that the "working life" of a top athlete is not as long as the standard working life, it is possible for the athletes to achieve economic stability based on their results, performing under the flag of Montenegro.
The status of an athlete with a top representative result can be established for the athlete if he has not been legally convicted of a criminal offense or misdemeanor, or more precisely if he has not been legally convicted of a criminal offense for which he was sentenced to imprisonment for a period of more than three years, or for a criminal offense against life and bodies, freedoms and rights of man and citizen, sexual freedom, property, payment transactions and business operations, people's health, constitutional order and security of Montenegro, public order and peace, official duties and humanity and other goods protected by international law, or legally convicted for a misdemeanor prescribed by a special law regulating the prevention of violence and inappropriate behavior at sports events.
Employment contracts with sports organizations also differ in the part related to salaries and other incomes of professional athletes. In that part, "premiums" appear as segments that distinguish this type of employment contract from ordinary employment contracts. Of course, similar practices exist in other professions.
Working hours, vacations, absences and other rights and obligations of natural persons in sports are adapted to the regime of sports preparations, that is, training and sports events.
Therefore, in this part, it is left to the contracting parties to arrange their relations in the most suitable way, so that there can be equal conditions for every engaged athlete, and in order to ensure respect for rights and obligations due to the nature of sport.
The specificity of the contract on work with a sports organization is further reflected in the way disputes are resolved. The law clearly prescribes the jurisdiction of the arbitration court in this part. Therefore, Sports Entities, to resolve disputes, first turn to the arbitration of the national sports federation, i.e. the Paralympic Committee, and if the dispute is not resolved in that way, or the arbitration is transferred, the sports entities turn to arbitration under the jurisdiction of the Montenegrin Olympic Committee.
The decisions of the sports arbitration, formed as necessary by the Montenegrin Olympic Committee and the permanent sports arbitration court, are final.
Bearing in mind all of the above, in connection with the employment contract with the sports organization, most athletes still do not have legal advisors or representatives, except for managers. I believe that legal advice, as well as other forms of consultation, are much more necessary for an amateur athlete or a rising professional athlete than for a professional athlete who has gone through the negotiation process several times. I think the question is whether the athlete can afford not to have legal counsel.
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