Uber Eats, Volkswagen, Konami, Orange, Coca Cola and Xbox Foundation… Tuesday afternoon, Kylian Mbappé preferred to stay in his room in Clairefontaine rather than participate in the promotional spots planned by the Blues. Ethical problem, desire to redirect revenue from shootings to amateur football… The PSG star has somewhat stirred up the tranquility of the selection with this debate around the collective management of image rights. A risky side step, rare but not unheard of.
In the history of the Blues, there is a famous precedent, already involving a legend of the rooster jersey. Michel Platini and his teammates flew to the much-maligned Argentine World Cup in 1978 when a request from the equipment manufacturer Adidas came to sow discord. Before the first match against Italy, the German brand adds a request to the contract paid up to 5,000 francs per player. For 1,500 francs more, they are asked to shine the three white stripes on their black shoes with silver paint.
The group considers itself aggrieved and asks for a revaluation. Negotiations begin behind the scenes but do not succeed. As a form of retaliation, they therefore decide to hide the logo using shoe polish before entering the lawn. History is first silenced. It was after the defeat (2-1) that the affair broke out from the mouth of the doctor of the selection. Public opinion castigates these whims of stars, the accused persist, despite some tensions in the group. “We are professionals, we do not play for the beautiful eyes of the princess”, declared midfielder Dominique Bathenay. The fiasco is total since, twelve years after their last participation, these Blues with the promising generation leave the competition in the first round.
The two stripes on Cruyff’s shirt in 1974
The other major boycott recalling Mbappé’s initiative also concerns Adidas. It takes place four years earlier during the World Cup played in West Germany. The king of Amsterdam Johan Cruyff goes on a crusade. Furious that the players do not take advantage at any time of the partnership signed with the Federation, he improvises stylist. In business with the Puma brand for his shoes, he asks for financial compensation for wearing the competitor’s outfit.
“To protest, I had a jersey made with two stripes instead of three and I played the final like that”, he justified himself. “The Federation of the Netherlands did not want to hear that, if the orange jersey belonged to them, I was the only master as far as my face was concerned! “Years later, he will even win a lawsuit against Adidas who wanted to put an end to the marketing of this famous orange flocked number 14 jersey.
Conflicts of this type between internationals and bodies have never really disappeared. It is often the negotiations around participation bonuses that agitate the workforce, especially on the side of the African selections. It was the turn of the Gabonese to strike this winter in the middle of the CAN.
In 2019, Norwegian star Ada Hegerberg also scratched her federation. This time, the equipment manufacturers are not in question but it is a question of financial compensation. The OL striker renounces the World Cup in France in order to denounce the inequalities in remuneration between the men’s and women’s teams.