Erling Haaland Sues an Airline for Using His Image

Haaland has sued Norwegian for using his image without permission during the World Cup, after promoting flights with a plane decorated with his characteristic ponytail.

Haaland reported an airline

The Norwegian footballer Erling Braut Haaland, from Manchester City, has filed a lawsuit against the airline Norwegian for the unlawful use of his image during the last World Cup, held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

"We can confirm that we have sued Norwegian Air Shuttle on behalf of York Promotions and Erling Braut Haaland." The case concerns the unlawful exploitation of Haaland's distinctive features to promote plane tickets during the World Cup," said lawyer Thomas Hagen to the Norwegian newspaper VG.

The airline's response

The Norwegian airline confirmed to the NTB agency on Thursday the receipt of the complaint and removed from its social media an image of a plane covered with the player's famous ponytail - which was cut after the World Cup - and the slogan: "We've never looked more Norwegian."

Norwegian described the measure as "incomprehensible" to NTB and lamented that "a few posts based on trends on social media" used to support the Norwegian team had been met with a lawsuit.

Norwegian expressed hope that a "reasonable" dialog could allow in the future to continue cheering for the "sports heroes" of the Nordic country.

A district court in Oslo will hold a preliminary hearing between the parties on October 9, prior to a possible trial, according to VG. EFE