Can an Australian soccer legend outrank FIFA contractual terms?

Ground staff at Allianz Stadium have been busy covering the brass plaques bearing the names of several Australian sporting legends to comply with a directive issued by FIFA ahead of the Women’s World Cup after SCG Trust, which operates Allianz Stadium and the SCG, was directed to remove all unofficial branding from its sites (including the Allianz Stadium logo, the Sydney Roosters logo and anything that has the SCG Trust Logo) due to FIFA’s “clean site” policy that applies at host stadiums.?Before the coverings were even dry, FIFA backtracked after a PR backlash from the sporting community.

What is a “clean site policy”?

A clean site policy typically means that a venue must be delivered “clean”, meaning any commercial or non-commercial branding of non-official event partners or sponsors at the premises must be removed.

This can range from the name of the stadium to the badges on the beer taps and staff uniforms. For example, Suncorp Stadium will be renamed “Brisbane Stadium” for the duration of the tournament, and AAMI Park now has the name “Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.”

The event organiser (in this case, FIFA) will then take over the clean venues a couple of weeks before a tournament begins and be allowed to apply the branding of its own partners and sponsors.

What happened with the plaques?

An issue arose at Allianz Stadium because the brass plaques that appear on the statues of several Australian sports heroes outside Allianz Stadium also contained the SCG Trust Logo. This meant that the names of these sporting heroes such as Dally Messenger, Marlene Mathews, Betty Cuthbert and Socceroos skipper Johnny Warren were also covered up to adhere to the directive.

After backlash from the community, FIFA has allegedly reversed part of its directive, meaning the plaques will remain. Even the FIFA contractual terms were not enough to overcome the PR backlash.

What other considerations are there?

The terms that exist between an event host and a venue may include policies such as “clean site” policies, however, many sports also have their own “laws”.?For example,?Rule 51 of the Olympic Charter and FIFA Law 4 forbid any form of political or religious expression on the sports ground. These laws must also be taken into consideration by broadcasters and commentators.

The venue might also have commercial agreements in place with venue sponsors and/or sports teams who call the venue their home ground, including in relation to signage and naming rights. Those agreements will likely include a term that the brand name can be covered in the event of hosting an international event.

The power that FIFA has to insist on clean sites is something that other sports organisations have tried to replicate, however, the PR nightmare that can ensue from removing certain branding may result in organisers querying whether it’s worth enforcing their contractual rights.

We won’t tell you our opinion about AAMI Park in Melbourne being renamed as Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.

Questions? Just ask.

Update written by Emma Johnsen and Sophie Ciufo.