Irish pranksters and occasional betting operators Paddy Power have earned the ire of a football god by attempting a temporary rebrand as Péle Power. The company formerly known as Paddy Power had erected new signage at 20 of its betting shops proudly proclaiming their new borrowed identity, but Brazilian football legend Péle doesn’t appear to have got the joke. The Independent reported that the signage was taken down mere days after going up as Péle’s attorneys sent the Paddsters what a source called an “extremely aggressive” cease-and-desist letter.
New York agency Legends 10, which handles Péle’s name and image rights, reportedly unleashed their attorneys within hours of their client’s name appearing on 10 shops in Ireland and 10 more in the UK. Paddy issued a characteristically cheeky statement that referenced Péle’s commercial endorsement of boner pills Viagra, saying Paddy had “wanted to give people a lift for the World Cup … unfortunately our plans fell flat … we are a bit deflated.” (Fortunately, the same deflation has yet to befall that giant Jesus balloon Paddy’s Aussie offshoot Sportsbet recently floated over Melbourne.)
This isn’t the first 2014 FIFA World Cup promo that has got Paddy’s name in the news. Last week, an aerial photo circulated that purportedly showed the phrase “C’mon England PP” hacked out of a section of the Brazilian rainforest. Environmentally minded social media mavens erupted in outrage, slamming Paddy for their desecration of an endangered portion of the planet’s biosphere.
That is, until Paddy revealed the image was actually a clever Photoshop and that no trees had been harmed to create this bit of viral marketing. As proof, the company circulated a new photo of the same forest in which the phrase “We didn’t give the Amazon a Brazilian” appeared to have been carved. Harry Dromey, Paddy’s official ‘mischief champion,’ wrote a blog piece on The Drum saying they weren’t out to become “the Bono of bookmakers,” but didn’t mind using their profile now and then to raise awareness for causes as worthwhile as shaving the rainforest.
