Sportslaw Jargon: Best Interest of the Sport

In 1919 when it was discovered that eight members of the Chicago White Sox fixed the outcome of the World Series Game and caused their team to loose to the Cincinnati Reds, the favorite All-American past time was tarnished. To regain the respect of Americans and to discourage and punish gamblers and unethical players, the American and the National Leagues named Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis as the first Commissioner of Major League Baseball. As part of his mandate, he was given the power to take any actions and impose any sanctions for acts against "the best interest of the sport."

Other leagues adopted this standard. The Major League Baseball Agreement, The National Football League Constitution and Bylaws and the National Basketball League Constitution proscribe certain player behavior that may have a negative impact on the reputation of the sport.

The commissioners have "best interest" authority to determine what behavior should be punished, the sentence, and/or the fine to be imposed. Both the NBA and the MLB have collective bargaining agreements that allow players to appeal a punishment to an outside arbitrator. The NFL has no provision for outside arbitration.

The courts have been reluctant to overturn a commissioner's determination. They display judicial deference for the commissioner's determination and will overturn a decision only when it is deemed arbitrary and capricious. To the courts, the commissioner is respected as the ultimate interpreter of their professional sports rules and regulations. However, the presence of neutral arbitrators to decide disputes, have impacted on the commissioners' powers under the "best interest" clause.

Most of the behavior punished by commissioners have been drug use (Daryl Strawberry), gambling (Pete Rose) and violence (Latrell Spreewell). Often the public looks favorably towards this power to punish acts which cause embarrassment and disrepute to the sport. As noted earlier, the unions and many journalists and sports historians have viewed this power with more suspicion.