Manchester City’s Erling Haaland is one of the biggest soccer stars on the planet, and the Norwegian seems to want to make sure that no one capitalizes on that fame.
And that includes taking his signature hairdo and slapping it on an airline.
One Norwegian air carrier is reportedly learning that firsthand.
According to Norwegian outlet VG, a lawsuit has been filed against Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA by Haaland and York Promotions Ltd. that has to do with a post the airline made on social media.
The company posted a photo of one of their planes with Haaland’s ponytail with shaved sides — which he recently cut — plopped on top and the caption, “We’ve never looked more Norwegian.”
POLICE SEIZE COCAINE BRICKS WITH STICKERS OF NORWEGIAN SOCCER STAR ERLING HAALAND ALL OVER THEM
That post has since been deleted, but there’s a hearing scheduled for October 9 in Oslo.
“It is true that we have received a lawsuit that we do not understand,” Norwegian press officer Eivind Hammer Myhre said. “We, like almost all of Norway, have been involved in cheering on the national team this summer through a few spontaneous posts based on trends in social media.”
This is interesting. I’m far from a trademark law expert — I dabble, though — but I could see this going either way.
On one hand, I get wanting to protect your brand, and that extends to a signature hairdo like the one Haaland has become known for.
Buuuuuut…
Social media has made stuff like this so weird, because trends pop up, and then companies (for some reason, I kind of wish it would stop) feel the need to hop on board and toss up a hastily photoshopped image.
Well, maybe this will put an end to that… at least in Norway.
