Professional team sports leagues in the U.S. have historically operated as monopolies, unchecked by many of the antitrust laws applicable to most other industries. Team owners employed reserve clauses that gave them complete control over a player' s career, restricting the player's autonomy in trades. James Quinn, of Berg & Androphy, who has represented the professional sports players' associations, explains the major developments over the past half-century that have chipped away at the reserve systems and established free agency in sports.
Watch Part 1 of Players v. League—Battling the Sports Monopolies.