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Illegal Heineken Ads at Soccer Match
In spite of the ban on beer ads at sporting events, League of Champions sponsor Heineken will place advertisements for its beer in Luzhniki Stadium tomorrow during the Chelsea vs. Manchester United match. The Moscow organizing committee promised Heineken and the UEFA in writing that the ads could be placed without consequences. Minister of Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs Vitaly Mutko, who is also president of the Russian Soccer Union, confirmed that position last week, in spite of the unambiguous prohibition of beer advertising in stadiums in article 22, part 2, of the law “On Advertising.” The Administrative Code of the Russian Federation sets a fine of 40,000-500,000 rubles for violations of advertising law.
The organizing committee for the League of Champions final match in Moscow is made up of members of the Russian Soccer Union, the Russian government and the City of Moscow Department of Fitness and Sports. A high-placed source at the Federal Antimonopoly Service said that “the painful question” of permitting the advertising “was decided on the level of Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov.” Officially, that agency declined to discuss the situation yesterday.
The FAS has prevented earlier attempts to place beer advertising in stadiums, including Heineken ads in Luzhniki. Exceptions to the law “On the Procedure for Exiting the Russian Federation and Entering the Russian Federation” were also made to simplify the receipt of visas by foreign fans. An amendment was passed by the State Duma to allow the president to simplify the visa procedure by order. About 40,000 English fans have come to Moscow with just a passport, a ticket to the match and a completed migration card. Several laws were introduced to allow beer ads in stadiums, but the Duma was unable to pass any of them.
Heineken has been sponsoring the League of Champions since 1994, and will continue to do so until at least 2012. The company spends 13 percent of its receipts (ˆ1.63 billion) on advertising, and considers ads at the League of Champions final a serious sales booster.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of May 20, 2008
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