Norwegian football star Erling Braut Haaland has been making a lot of money in recent years, and clearly wants to maintain control over his name, branding and image for financial gain. He and his lawyers weren’t happy when Norwegian Air allegedly tried to cash in on his former trademark ponytail.
“We can confirm that we, on behalf of York Promotions Ltd and Erling Braut Haaland, have filed suit against Norwegian Air Shuttle asa,” wrote lawyer Thomas Hagen in an email to Oslo-based newspaper VG last week. The lawyers claim Norwegian Air exploited Haaland during the airline’s promotion of its routes to the the US during last summer’s World Cup.
The lawsuit was filed in the Oslo County Court, claiming Norwegian Air violated marketing laws. Norwegian Air claims they can’t understand the lawsuit at all: “We have, like most everyone in Norway, been part of cheering on the national football team last summer through a few spontaneous posts based on trends in social media,” the airline’s representatives responded in an email to Norwegian media. “It’s sad when cheering is met by a lawsuit, but we hope for a reasonable dialogue so that we can also cheer on our sports heroes in the future.”
The airline had earlier attached an image of a ponytail to a photo of a Norwegian jet on social media, reported both VG and newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN). It’s unclear whether that’s what sparked Haaland’s lawsuit, but the image has since been removed from the airline’s promotional material.
NewsinEnglish.no staff
