Independent counsel for sports integrity, privacy, and IT law. Built on the Rijker Governance Adoption Model: Read, Structure, System, Culture, Integrity.
Most organisations have the policy. They have the registers. They have the certifications. What they do not have is governance that people follow when no one is watching.
That gap between governance on paper and governance in practice is exactly where risk accumulates. When a regulator, disciplinary body, or independent investigator arrives, that gap is measured. That is where we work.
Independent counsel and investigations for federations, associations, disciplinary bodies, and integrity commissions. From WADA- and ISR-adjacent investigations to integrity platforms, disciplinary codes, and athlete data governance. Where sport comes under pressure, integrity gets measured.
Privacy programmes that work in practice. From DPO-as-a-Service and DPIA frameworks to processor agreements and cross-border transfers. For boards that need to demonstrably show the standard is being followed, not merely that it exists.
Technology contracts, SaaS agreements, licensing, EU AI Act, NIS2, DORA, and ISO 27001 implementation. Legal advice that understands both the contract and the code, and that fits within the wider governance framework.
Rion Rijker is counsel for sports integrity, privacy, and IT law, active since 2015. LLM in IT Law (University of Groningen), MBA in Sport Management (Eaton Business School, thesis phase on governance in the Dutch combat sports sector), doctoral research in preparation.
Former director of the Dutch Combat Sports Federation (2024 to 2025) and of-counsel at SOLV Attorneys Amsterdam (2018 to 2023). Alongside counsel work he is a certified IAPP trainer (CIPP/E, CIPM, CIPT), CISM trainer, and jury member of the Dutch Privacy Awards.
His methodology, the Rijker Governance Adoption Model, is built around one principle: governance only works when it stands up at the moment it is tested.
Author of "Why Most Governance Programs Fail: The Missing Layer" (Rijker Advisory, April 2026).
Rijker Advisory has worked for Dutch ministries, listed companies (including Euronext, Vodafone, KPN, Transavia), professional services (including EY), Holland Casino, tech and mobility (including Sidekix), health-tech and biotech (including Quin, Monta Bioscience), supervisory and public institutions (including the Chamber of Commerce and the National Ombudsman), Dutch and international sports federations, and cross-border training and governance programmes for foreign regulators.
Client names are only mentioned with written consent.
Independent advice for directors, disciplinary bodies, and compliance leadership. Direct access, no intermediaries, no account managers.
Independent fact-finding investigations, expert opinions, and integrity assessments under mandate. Evidence-led, role boundaries kept, judgements defensible.
Research and publications at the intersection of law, behaviour, and regulation. Always applicable, never theory without consequence.
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