September 20 – Not only did Swiss club Young Boys suffer a humiliating defeat at the hands of Manchester United on Wednesday but they were in danger of falling foul of strict UEFA marketing rules.
All traces of commercial partners in and around the stadium that did not feature UEFA’s Champions League sponsors had to be tactfully removed or erased for the occasion.
These notably included several companies who were around at the time of the 1954 World Cup and which have been featured for years on the symbolic old stadium clock alongside a black and white photo of the final between Germany and Hungary.
According to Swiss reports, in order to avoid illegal competition and the risk of being fined, Young Boys officials were forced to temporarily blank out the offending adverts when United came to town.
“On UEFA Champions League match days, UEFA sponsors have an exclusive right, both in and around the stadium,” a UEFA spokesman was quoted as saying when asked if European football’s governing body was being somewhat over the top in applying the rules.
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