The Club as an Object of Sponsorship and Its Status
A club sponsorship agreement fits within the framework of the Georgian Law on Sport, whose Article 8 defines public and other non-state sports organizations: these are sports federations, associations, clubs and other unions aiming at the development of sport. The state supports the development of these organizations' activity and involves them in the governance of sport; where necessary, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport may, within its competence, transfer individual powers to them and supervise their exercise. Article 11 sharpens the club's status: a sports club conducts its activity in accordance with the law, the legislation in force and its own statute; it is a legal entity; and club status is granted to an organization whose founding documents satisfy the requirements of Georgian legislation and of the relevant national sports federation. For a sponsor, this means that where the counterparty is a club, establishing its status requires a double check — both state registration and conformity with the federation's requirements. A club without valid status is a risky object for a long-term sponsorship investment.
The Club's Lawful Sources of Financing
Article 23 establishes the system of sports financing, and it is here that the legal place of sponsorship contributions opens up. The state supports and cares for the development of sport and for this purpose provides budget financing; the funds allocated for the development of sport are reflected in a separate line in the state and local budgets. Beyond the budget, the law directly lists the sources of financing: contributions of state, private and public organizations, institutions and individual persons; profit derived from the club's own sporting, commercial-economic, advertising and intermediary activity; and funds received from sponsors and other assistance. Club sponsorship belongs to this third source — the sponsor's contribution is lawful sporting income. At the same time, funds received from non-budget sources have no effect on the amount of state budget allocations: a contribution made by a sponsor does not become a ground for reducing the club's budget. This design makes sponsorship a genuinely additional instrument, not a substitute pushed into the club by an indifferent budget.