Advertisement

Nike fined for putting French shirt on Churchill

Sophie Inge
Sophie Inge - [email protected]
Nike fined for putting French shirt on Churchill
The French basketball team posing with the dressed-up statue. Photo: BFMTV

American sportswear giant Nike has been ordered to pay thousands of euros by a court in Paris after arranging a stunt that saw a French basketball shirt placed on the statue of Britain's war-time Prime Minister Winston Churchill near the Champs-Elysée.

Advertisement

The sportswear firm organized the stunt with event management company Ubi Bene to celebrate the French basketball team’s entry into the final of the European championship on September 19th 2011 and qualification for the upcoming 2012 Olympics in London.

Emblazoned with a number 9, the Nike shirt was the same worn by French basketball champion Tony Parker that year, Le Point reported.

The French team were then photographed in front of the three-metre-high statue, which is located on Avenue Winston Churchill in Paris, just off the Champs-Elysée.

But the 84-year-old sculptor of the statue, Jean Cardot, said he did not give them permission to do so, and took the firms to court.

In a recent judgement the Paris court of appeal ordered the firms to pay Cardot €67,000 each for disrespecting the statue by exploiting it for publicity purposes.

 

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also