Football “Defeated in every way”
FIFA must compensate inventors of free kick spray
As of: 5:03 p.m. | Reading time: 2 minutes
Internationally, free kick spray was used for the first time at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil
What: REUTERS
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The inventor of the free kick spray took legal action against FIFA for years. Now he is proven right in Brazil and feels like “David against Goliath”. He demanded $40 million in compensation. It is still unclear what amount he will actually receive.
A quick spray has ended tiresome discussions on the football field for years. The referees use the free kick spray to show where the ball should be and the wall should be. An innovation that made the game better. But for as long as the spray has been around, there has been controversy over it.
After years of legal dispute, the Brazilian inventor of the free kick spray has prevailed against the world football association Fifa. The Supreme Court in Brazil rejected FIFA’s appeal and ordered the world association to compensate Heine Allemagne and his company Spuni Comércio de Produtos Esportivos for the misuse of his invention.
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In 2000, Allemagne invented the spray with which referees can mark the position of the free-kick wall – and which then quickly dissolves again. From 2009, the spray was used by the South American football association Conmebol, and in 2014 it was used for the first time at the World Cup in Brazil. Allemagne accused FIFA of improper use of the product he patented and demanded $40 million in compensation.
“I beat FIFA in every way”
It was initially unclear how much compensation would actually be. The entrepreneur’s lawyers initially wanted to wait for the written judgment to be published before asserting the claims.
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“I have defeated FIFA in every respect,” the entrepreneur told the TV station TV Globo after the verdict was announced. “It’s the story of David and Goliath. FIFA is a giant, it’s been a 23-year battle. I’m very proud. We have made history in world football.”
His lawyer Larissa Teixeira was also satisfied with the verdict. “This is one of the cases we dream about as lawyers because justice was truly served,” she said. “It is a Brazilian inventor who invented something that really influenced football.” Fifa has not yet commented on the verdict.
