National Sports Governance Bill Gets Final Nod, Now An Act

Introduction

Sports in India play an important role, serving not only as recreation and competition but also as a means of international representation. Governance of sports bodies, however, has faced recurring problems such as undefined term limits, overlapping responsibilities of administrators, and lack of effective grievance redressal for athletes. Earlier, the government attempted to regulate these issues through codes, circulars, and executive instructions, but these lacked the binding force of law.

After debate and passage in Parliament, it received Presidential assent. With the Gazette notification, it has come into force as the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. The Act marks a shift from executive directions to a legislative structure that defines responsibilities and ensures accountability in Indian sports administration.

Timeline

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports introduced the Bill in the Lok Sabha on July 23, 2025. After debate and discussion, the Lok Sabha passed it on August 11, 2025. It was then considered and approved by the Rajya Sabha during the following sessions. The Bill received Presidential assent on August 18, 2025, and a Gazette notification on the same day brought the law into effect. The present law creates binding obligations for sports bodies, their affiliates, and administrators.

About the Act

The Act establishes four categories of governing bodies: the National Olympic Committee, the National Paralympic Committee, National Sports Federations for each designated sport, and Regional Sports Federations. These organisations must be affiliated with corresponding international federations, except for sports without such bodies. Each will also have state and district affiliates.

The Act requires each national body to have a general body, an executive committee, an athletes committee, an ethics committee, and a dispute resolution committee. The executive committee cannot exceed fifteen members and must include at least two sportspersons of merit and four women. Age and term limits are prescribed: candidates must be at least twenty-five years old and not more than seventy, though under international rules this can extend to seventy-five. A person cannot hold the office of President, Secretary General, or Treasurer for more than three consecutive terms, either in the same office or in combination.

The Act creates the National Sports Board to regulate, monitor, and recognise sports organisations. The Board can suspend or cancel recognition, inquire into misuse of funds, or constitute ad-hoc administrative bodies if an organisation loses international recognition. Only recognised bodies may receive central government funding, and affiliate units must be registered. The Board will consist of members appointed by the central government from persons with expertise in law, administration, and sports governance, based on recommendations from a search-cum-selection committee.

A dedicated National Sports Tribunal has been constituted body is headed by a chairperson drawn either from the bench of the Supreme Court or a former Chief Justice of any High Court. Supporting this appointment is a duo of members, each selected for demonstrated proficiency in law, administration, or the athletic field itself. Armed with the authority of a civil court, the tribunal’s rulings are subject to Supreme Court review, save for those occasions where instrumental international or­gan conditioning prescribes the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland as the exclusive appellate bench. The tribunal consciously abstains from adjudicating matters reserved for the administer­ing international federations, any doping confrontations adjudicated under the National Anti-Doping Act of 2022, as well as rulings concerning internal affairs already determined by national sporting committees.

The Act mandates that all sports bodies frame a Code of Ethics and establish internal grievance redressal systems. The National Sports Board will prepare a Safe Sports Policy, with provisions for the protection of women and minor athletes. Elections are to be conducted under the supervision of a National Sports Election Panel made up of retired election officials. Similar panels must be created at state and district levels by affiliate units.

Recognised sports organisations are considered public authorities under the Right to Information Act, 2005 for their statutory functions. They must undergo audits by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and publish their accounts. Use of names such as “India,” “National,” or any national insignia requires prior approval.

Finally, the central government retains certain powers. It may exempt organisations from provisions of the Act to promote specific sports, relax eligibility in special circumstances, and impose restrictions in extraordinary situations such as those relating to public order or national security.

Significance

The Act has several implications. For athletes, it creates direct representation in governance structures, ensures access to grievance redressal, and introduces protections through the Safe Sports Policy. This makes athletes part of decision-making processes and ensures their concerns are formally recognised.

For sports bodies, the Act sets uniform conditions for recognition and funding. It prescribes clear eligibility and term limits, introduces independent oversight in elections, and requires compliance with financial and transparency standards. These measures reduce uncertainties about the legitimacy of organisations and address concerns about concentration of power.

The establishment of the National Sports Board marks the first time statutory oversight replaces reliance on executive orders, thereby embedding mandatory governance into the sports governance framework. In tandem, the National Sports Tribunal establishes a dedicated, expert arena for resolving sports-related conflicts. By transferring cases away from general civil courts and concentrating on sports law, the Tribunal offers faster rulings grounded in specialised knowledge, reducing delays and elevating the fairness of outcomes.

For India’s international standing, the Act reflects alignment with Olympic and Paralympic Charters. It integrates global standards into domestic governance and reduces the likelihood of suspension or disaffiliation by international federations. By making Indian federations answerable both domestically and internationally, it places Indian sports governance within a unified legal framework.

Conclusion

The National Sports Governance Act of 2025 provides a clear statutory framework within which recognised sports federations must operate. Whether the statute ultimately establishes a durable culture of accountability and eliminates ambiguity in the management of Indian sports will therefore be decided on the ground, during the first cycle of its enforced application, well before the next quadrennial bench-mark events.