/ 15 June 2010

Fifa denies detaining Dutch fans

Fifa has denied reports it detained dozens of women for wearing orange mini-dresses at a World Cup match in an alleged ambush marketing scam by a Dutch brewery.

More than 30 young, blonde fans attended The Netherlands’ match against Denmark at Soccer City on Monday wearing skimpy dresses that are in the country’s national colour and are a symbol of a beer advertising campaign back home.

“There were no arrests. No one was detained,” Fifa spokesperson Nicolas Maingot said on Tuesday.

However, Maingot said Fifa officials at the stadium did ask the women about “clear ambush marketing”.

“The only thing that we have done is actually asking some details [from] these women who have been involved,” he said. “What seems to have happened is that there was a clear ambush marketing activity by a Dutch brewery company.”

Maingot said Fifa was looking into “all available legal remedies” against the Bavaria NV brewery.

Fifa strictly enforces its commercial rules, which allow only its official partners to use the World Cup for advertising and promotion campaigns.

The United States’ brand, Budweiser, is the official World Cup beer and the only one sold at World Cup stadiums and official fan viewing sites.

Brewer Anheuser-Busch Inbev is one of Fifa’s eight second-tier World Cup sponsors, giving it exclusive sales rights.

Protecting sponsors’ exclusive rights has helped Fifa earn at least $1,2-billion in commercial deals in the four years leading up to this year’s World Cup. Television rights deals are worth at least $2-billion.

Fifa says 75% of this money is reinvested in football
through development programs and organising other international competitions.

This is the second straight World Cup that the Bavaria NV company has upset Fifa with its marketing tactics.

Four years ago, the dispute centered on men trying to watch games wearing orange lederhosen, with a distinctive black tail, which displayed the company’s name.

The lederhosen were seized by stadium staff in Stuttgart, Germany, before the Dutch played the Côte d’Ivoire.

Despite reports that some watched the game in their underpants, the fans were wearing usual clothes under the orange costumes. – Sapa-AP