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26 January 2017Trademarks

Real Madrid to change logo in Middle East

Spanish professional football club Real Madrid will reportedly change its logo in some Middle Eastern countries as part of a licensing deal with retail group Marka.

According to news agency Reuters, Real Madrid will not feature the Christian cross on its clothing sold in the Middle East.

Marka, based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has been granted exclusive rights to “manufacture, distribute and sell Real Madrid products”, according to a statement released by the company on Tuesday, January 24.

These products are due to be sold in the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, and according to  reports, the deal is expected to last five years.

The products will be subject to quality control by Real Madrid, but they will not be available at the football club’s megastore at its home stadium, Santiago Bernabéu.

Real Madrid has changed its logo a number of times since 1902 and the latest modification was in 2001, when the club wanted to standardise its crest for the 21st century.

Khaled Al Mheiri, vice chairman and CEO of Marka, told UAE-based news site The National: "We have moved into licensing and you will see some important tie-ups being announced over the next three weeks. The Real Madrid brand is a huge draw and also ties in with Emirates as well.”

The products will reportedly be sold at Marka’s retail outlets in the Middle East, but the company plans to distribute its products to other retailers.

The price of the licensing deal has not been disclosed.

Rob Deans, head of Clyde & Co's intellectual property team in the Middle East and North Africa region, said: “From a trademark perspective, Real Madrid's decision to remove the Christian cross from its logo is a wise one.”

He explained that the GCC Trade Mark Law (which applies in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain) and other trademark laws in the region exclude protection for and use of marks that are "identical or similar to symbols of a pure religious nature".

“It is therefore sensible not to include any form of religious symbol in logos being used in the Middle East. This is particularly the case in Saudi Arabia, which takes a particularly strict approach to the enforcement of this provision,” added Deans.

Omar Obeidat, partner and head of intellectual property at Al Tamimi & Company, based in the Middle East, added that adopting a new trademark or amending an existing trademark may require registration of a new mark.

“Changes to an existing registered trademark will not require fresh registrations where the change is insignificant. However, having said that, in most cases changes to a mark usually warrant filing a new trademark registration,” he said.

According to Obeidat, costs of trademark registration in the Gulf Cooperation Council region are quite high, with the official cost of registering a trademark in Saudi Arabia or the UAE higher than the cost at the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

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