Manchester United have warned the Premier League to be careful of breaking strict rules on over-using their players in marketing and promotional activity.
United bosses are keeping a close watch on how the club and it’s stars are being used by the Premier League and it’s sponsorship partners.
And I can reveal they’ve had talks with the Premier League to stop breaches of the guidelines around image rights and intellectual property.
United’s huge global appeal and fanbase make them the biggest club in terms of promoting the Premier League worldwide.
The League’s sponsors want to use more United content than from any other club – and Old Trafford bosses aren’t happy at recent developments which have threatened to contravine specific regulations.
A United spokesman said: “There have been a couple of recent issues with two of the Premier League’s partners but in neither case did we make a formal complaint.
“We’ve had contact with the Premier League to remind them of the guidelines on use of club players in any marketing material they use.
“It was just a reminder that United will always look to protect our Intellectual Property and our own partners.”
The move comes after United took legal action to sue the owners of the video game Football Manager earlier this year for allegedly infringing its trademark by using the club’s name “extensively throughout the game.”
