Footballer Victor Wanyama has sued Menengai Oil Refineries Limited for illegally using his image in a commercial advertisement.
He says Menengai, without his consent, published his image alongside its trademarked logo on June 21 before the national football team was to make its appearance at the African Cup of Nations tournament.
“I logged on to my Twitter account and confirmed that the company on their official Twitter account were indeed using my image in a commercial advertisement,” court documents read.
The images, which appeared on Facebook and Twitter, were accompanied by the message: 'If you believe it, you can do it. We at Menengai should like to wish our boys all the best in the #AfricaCupOfNations. From #TheHeartOfGoodLiving. We believe in you'.
Wanyama says the wording in the caption of the tweet together with the use of his image creates the impression he is the official brand ambassador of Menengai.
Wanyama is a professional football player in the English Premier League, currently signed with Tottenham Hotspurs football club in London. He is also the captain of the Kenya national football team, Harambee Stars.
The footballer contends that given the context of the publication, the images were understood by the public eager to watch the match, that he was endorsing Menengai as its commercial ambassador as the image used did not contain the entire team but a few select individuals.
“I do not consent to the use of my image in the post published by Menengai. I am greatly disturbed by the continued use of the image as the company has failed to delete the offending post from its Twitter account despite the demand to do so having been made,” he says.
The footballer wants the court to declare that the firm's action to use his image without his consent has contravened his image and personality rights.
Also sought is a declaration that the image constitutes a marketing advertisement and that he is entitled to damages as a result of the violation of those rights.
Wanyama says he has worked hard throughout his career to build his brand and reputation over the past 12 years and as a result, he is the brand ambassador of several companies such as Adidas, Multichoice and Safaricom.
He says it is a total infringement of his image and proprietary rights that his image may be used to promote the products of another person or organisation without his knowledge.
“Other brands have managed to wish the national team messages of goodwill without infringing on the image rights of the players and football Kenya federation. The appearance of my image alongside that of another brand is likely to influence many towards that brand,” court documents read.
Edited by R.Wamochie
