Society

Zidane head-butt image trademarked

(AP)
Updated: 2006-08-03 16:26

BEIJING - A Chinese man has registered an image of French captain Zinedine Zidane's infamous head-butt in last month's World Cup final as his trademark, a local newspaper reported Thursday.

A Chinese man has registered an image of French captain Zinedine Zidane's infamous head-butt in last month's World Cup final as his trademark, a local newspaper reported Thursday. [Beijing Daily]

Zhao Xiaokai, a general manager of a public relations firm specializing in sports, is now considering selling the rights to the black-and-white silhouette, which depicts the soccer star ramming his head into the chest of Italy defender Marco Materazzi during the July 9 final, the Beijing Daily said.

Zhao paid 2,000 yuan (US$250; euro196) to register the trademark for clothing, shoes, hats and beer products, and has invited bids of 1 million yuan (US$125,000; euro98,000) for the rights, the report said.

"Two days after the World Cup ended, I started thinking about trying to trademark the image," Zhao was quoted as saying. "This image is highly recognizable. But by using silhouettes, I can avoid infringing on the soccer star's image rights."

Zhao's enterprise is the latest in a string of attempts to cash in on the soccer star's infamous play. A song parodying the head-butt is now on top of French music charts.

The foul - which drew Zidane a red card in overtime and later a fine and a three-game ban, although he is retired - has also become the subject of Internet jokes, online games and parody videos.