"Liverpool’s red-hot winger Mohamed Salah, an iconic figure in Egypt, has fallen out with the country’s football association over what his agent believes is the exploitation of his image rights by football authorities.
Salah’s agent Ramy Abbas, who is also the director of MS Commercial (Cayman), the entity that owns the player’s image rights, said his emails and letters to the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) went unanswered as he sought clarification on a number of issues."
Unusual for the authorities to play deaf & dumb when confronted by something awkward
. The Cayman Islands is a popular home for lodging image rights....tax avoidance being the motive."Abbas was particularly concerned about an EgyptAir plane designed for the national team ahead of the World Cup, bearing the pictures of several players including Salah. He argued that the EFA and its sponsor, advertising agency Presentation, could not use Salah’s image without a written consent from MS Commercial."
Not content with being fobbed off, Abbas wrote to the EFA :
“I hereby … demand that the image of Mohamed Salah be immediately removed from the Egypt Air aeroplane, and that the Egyptian Football Association, Presentation and its commercial partners immediately cease using, and/or authorizing the use of the image … without having obtained our express written consent.”
http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/298445.aspx
Salah's popularity in Egypt exceeds that of the president......a point which the authorities would be well advised to bear in mind if push comes to shove..
Watch this space!
