Norwegian Erling Haaland filed a lawsuit against the airline Norwegian Air Shuttle for illegally using his image, in a move that the latter considered incomprehensible and “unfortunate,” according to what the two parties reported on Thursday.
Manchester City star's lawyer, Thomas Hagen, said in an email to Agence France-Presse that "the case relates to (the Norwegians) illegally using Haaland's distinctive features to promote airline tickets during the FIFA World Cup."
The Norwegian team, led by City's top scorer, succeeded in reaching the quarter-finals of the North American World Cup this summer in a remarkable achievement, in its first participation since 1998, before losing to England 1-2.
The exact details of the subject of the dispute are not known, but according to the newspaper “Verdens Gang”, which revealed the case, “Norwegian Air Shuttle” deleted from its social media accounts a composite image showing one of its planes decorated with a ponytail, in reference to Haaland’s distinctive hairstyle, before he recently cut his hair.
The caption accompanying the photo said: “We have never looked so Norwegian.”
For its part, Norwegian Air Shuttle confirmed that it had received a summons to appear before the judiciary, “which is difficult for us to understand.”
Company spokeswoman Katarina Solé told Agence France-Presse: “Like almost all Norwegians, we encouraged the national team this summer, through some spontaneous posts inspired by popular trends on social media.”
She added: “It is unfortunate that this encouragement is met with a lawsuit, but we hope to hold a rational dialogue so that we can also continue to support our sporting heroes in the future, of whom we are all proud.”
According to the newspaper, a hearing is scheduled to be held in the Oslo court on October 9.
Alpine driver Franco Colapinto said that the days following his accident at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix were among the most difficult in his career, after he found himself facing a torrent of criticism on social media following the collision that caused his teammate Pierre Gasly and McLaren driver Lando Norris to leave the race.
The accident came after the race resumed in Baku behind the safety car, when Colapinto's car's brakes locked at the first turn, causing him to collide with Gasly in an accident whose impact extended to Norris, the holder of the Formula 1 title.
Norris had initially called for Colapinto to be suspended for one race, blaming him for the accident, before he later retracted his statements and confirmed that they were made under the pressure of emotion.
Colapinto told reporters on Thursday before the Bahrain Grand Prix held in Malaysia: “There are moments that are more difficult than others, but the most important thing is that we learn from them and emerge stronger. Drivers and people.”
He added: “...It was one of those experiences that you can only overcome and benefit from.” In the end, these situations are what make you a stronger person.
The 23-year-old Argentine driver took full responsibility for what he described as a “silly mistake” that had “major consequences,” noting that the McLaren drivers, Norris and Oscar Piastri, also suffered from locking up their brakes at the same turn during the race.
He said: “As soon as the contact occurred, I returned to the pit area and took full responsibility.”
Colapinto admitted that he was somewhat surprised by Norris's initial demands to stop him, pointing out that the McLaren driver had been one of the most vocal in the past about the damage caused by online abuse campaigns.
“I think he was speaking out of emotion,” he said. He is well aware of the impact of these comments; Because he went through similar experiences, and he was one of the most prominent drivers who spoke about hatred on social media in recent years.”
The incident sparked a wave of offensive comments online, but Colapinto refused to limit them to his Argentine fans, stressing that “hatred comes from different parts of the world and from multiple audiences.”
He added: “My message has not changed. Sometimes people don't realize how much harm words written behind a screen can cause. We are human beings in the end, and dealing with these matters is not easy.”
Colapinto confirmed that the dispute between him and Norris had become a thing of the past, explaining that they spoke later and that “everything is fine.”
He also praised the head of the Alpine team, Flavio Briatore, describing him as “one of the best managers” he has dealt with in motorsport, denying reports that he was subjected to pressure or the threat of losing his seat.
He said: “Nothing has changed at all, and we look to the future with optimism.”
He concluded by saying: “I am very grateful to be on this team, and for the support I received from everyone, and from Flavio from day one. My relationship with Pierre is also excellent; So things are going well.”
