I promised my good friend Taza not to flood her timeline with my posts and so this is the last post am making on the Barcelon Legends game.
For the record I support this game and I will attend it. And, no, I am a free citizen am not even worried about these Mafias. But I don’t agree with the illegalities surrounding the game.
One thing many people may not know is that container-loads of fake 2012 Nike jersey replicas were made in China some time back without the permission of FAZ or nike. Whether you like those in FAZ leadership or not, there is the law. Follow it.
These jerseys were going to be sold to make money for a certain cartel had elections gone a certain way. But voters didn’t want the mafias to be in charge of FAZ. So the counterfeiters were stuck with these replicas. This game, which is falsely said to be organised by the government and yet is private sector and was first attempted in 2016. Records are there. This is not an innovation of goverment.
This game gives legitimacy to selling these fake 2012 nikes. If it was just a game, any jersey could have been used and people would have gone home afterwards. But using that 2012 jersey generates demand for the fake replicas which for the last few years have even sold in bits and pieces.
The mafias want to whitewash the fake kit and launder the proceeds. There’s a familiar pattern here. They know Zambians are fanatical about soccer. Thus by packaging this deal in a high profile football match, they hoped the whole thing would go unnoticed. Neat? Right? But you just can’t fool ALL the people, all the time. Some of us are ‘awoke’.
Even if it was to use legitimate replicas bought from FAZ in 2012, using them in a commercial game with gate sales, replica sales, TV advertisements etc is illegal without permission of the owner of the trademarks: FAZ.
Then there is the issue of covering the FAZ logo during this game. It’s like saying I will wear the fake rolex and cover it with a 
. It is still counterfeiting. This attempt is simply confirmation that the game is simply an end to something about the kit. Even if you removed the logo, the jersey design is still a FAZ trademark and subject to copyright. It is wrong to use the trademarks and designs without the permission of the owner of the trademark and in this case both Nike and FAZ. Covering the logo doesnt mean the logo is not there. The problem is not whether the logo is visible or not. The issue is why was the jersey made in the first place? That is a counterfeit and the authorities should be coming in because we are promoting unlawful counterfeiting for personal benefits.
Some of you have even been duped into attacking those of us against this not knowing your friends will make millions out of the jersey sales. Someone on the Copperbelt has a shop full of these fake replicas. I have no problem with making millions out of gate takings. That is fine and great entrepreneurship. Not fake replicas. Iyayi nakana.
For me this is wrong. Today we shall promote this lawlessness in football replicas and even legitimatise it using government offices. What stops tomorrow someone doing the same with fake drugs through working with Ministry of Health?
And no this has nothing to do with my team The Elite Ladies FC . I have been writing about these issues of football governance way before I even founded the women’s Super league team. And my players who go to National team do so on merit. One of them is the best player in the local league and has been top scorer two years in a row. She already has legendary status having scored the goal that took Zambia to the WAFCON and this is the goal that made Zambia’s participation in this year’s World Cup possible. And no she was never caught with any drug. Ignore all defamation and hatred towards her simply because people have failed to debate these issues with points and facts like I am doing.
