The UEFA is 'interested' in my game

[Cwali]

Here's some story:

By placing several prototype versions of game materials and rules on my site and Boardgamegeek I get much input to improve things. Big thanks to all who helped!!! With suggestions, corrections, brainstorm, reporting errors ...

I got one 'error report' from an unexpected direction. They found my soccer game 'Champions2020' on Boardgamegeek and my site. I got a letter starting with 'De Union des Associations Européennes de Football (UEFA) gevestigd te Nyon, Zwitserland, ... (written in Dutch). I didn't verify it yet but it seems real. The UEFA doesn't want to buy the game, but wants to destroy it. And not one, but all. In the letter they assume the game is produced (it's not) and sold (it's not) and that they saw the final pictures (not true too). I took away those old pictures for the moment, will place new soon (together with annnouncing 3 other game releases soon). About the old prototype pictures and rulebook versions for translators, proofreading, commenting etc. the UEFA did think that is in the game and claims that a drawn ball and the 'ball miniature' (that's a way to name a piece of printed cardboard ...) in some pictures was alike their UEFA Champions League logo. I didn't know that logo. It's in their letter, you can google it. It's different, but 'they have a point there'. Would be an ugly case if the game really was produced. I don't like to connect the game to any 'brand', and I liked other possible ball pictures better already, so the option with stars on a ball I happily scrapped complete.
Besides burning all the games (while there are no games yet) there is a bill in the letter too. To pay EUR 1500,- within 10 days for 'ter tegemoetkoming in de juridische en andere kosten die de UEFA heeft gemaakt in verband met deze kwestie', which means 'for paying part of the costs they made to investicate this'. If they just phoned me it was solved for 10 eurocent. Of course they don't get money, and no free advertisement too. We checked every milimeter of the design again. Everything looks perfect, I hope I get no future letters from other unexpected directions. It's at the printhouse now. There are some minuscule small spots in the game where you assume a logo or so. But when you place it under a microscope you will see only some phantasy lines, no logoos or names. So you can buy it safely, the UEFA will not burn your house. But better be quick, before it all goes in a shredder ...

I admit I was chocked when reading how this letter is written. it's a funny story now, but it wouldn't have been funny at another point in time. I still look at the game thinking about if I overlooked anything. Yellow cards, goal posts, is the green grass legal? Has anyone exclusivity in printing a penalty dot? I now even stand up to have a look at the corner flag. I must stop with this. :)
So wish me luck with saving the game from shredders.

[H8Man]

I'm going to play the game "Greed" now...

[PzVIE-spielbox]

Considering the fact that the official UEFA '96 game I own is absolute trash, I guess it's just jealously :-)

I'm looking forward to play your soccer game!

[Timo1977]

That's what comes around when lawyers get bored :(

[Cwali]

Timo1977 schrieb:
>
> That's what comes around when lawyers get bored :(

Yes, in the introduction in the lawyer's letter he writes that the UEFA organizes the world famous (his words) UEFA Champions League, and each 4 years the European championship soccer, inclusive the EURO 2020 tournament. But no comment on the name of my game: 'Champions2020'. While that name is mentioned several times in the letter. So if they complain about the name later, I can prove they knew the name and didn't protest.

We tried to avoid associations with brand names and logo's. The idea for 2020 in the title is to make it not connected to current tournaments.
The German players for example have a shirt with the German flag colors, but in a way never used for the German national soccer team yet. I see the WC bycicle right now, it's precise like those German shirts. :)
At the place where is a logo on the German shirt on the cover, the 'logo' is a circle, but has no adler (that is the German soccer union symbol), no text, other color, so no conflict possible. The German shirt and socks have 2 stripes, not 3 like Adidas normally does and that brand is normally the German team sponsor. Looks good too by the way.
And so on. So we should be save.

The protest by the UEFA may be silly, but it's really not fine to read a letter with the dictate that you must destroy all games. Among a long list of dictates, I didn't even read that part complete. Dictate point 5 for example, tells that I must pay EUR 1500,- more for each day which I didn't have sent them a signed letter in which I admit that I am guilty. I will not send that of course. The 1500,- per day start to count next Tuesday. Last alinea in the letter tells that the UEFA will add all costs of the lawyer, instead of only the small fraction of 1500,-, when I don't send them what they want. So if I send all things asked and admit quilty, then UEFA takes a part of the lawyer costs. They are too kind ...

I sent a message to UEFA, telling that I got a letter from someone who tells he writes it for the UEFA and asks for 1500,- within a week and I wrote that it looks like swindle. My phone number I wrote in it, this should wake up the UEFA I hope. Speaking the Dutch lawyer will not make this stop quick, because letting it last long makes that he can send more bills to the UEFA. And with phoning to the UEFA I think I will not get far too.

[Cwali]

uh, to be precise, it's not the idea of the lawyer that it's done with 1500,-. First admitting quilty, and then bigger costs start I assume. In the list of dictates is also sending the bookholding with costs and income. It's all not important now, I just want to tell clear how rude the claim letter is.

[carpet2004]

Hoi Corné,

the passage with the payment seems to be a fake! Perhaps you really should get in touch with th UEFA and get money from them for the great game, promising to make an expansion with real players! Then you advertise the UEFA and being paid hahaha... no, I think there is a lawyer who wants to frighten you, but don't worry, this seems not to be legal...

[Cwali]

I searched internet for the lawyers company. It looks like the UEFA searched for an experienced lawyers company in the field of brand rights and infrigements. I see some cases they did in the past. But if a big beer producer like Bavaria has a conflict with the FIFA, it may be 'normal' to start with a letter with a list of senseless dictates. In the end, after lots of lawyer costs, they solve it without a problem. But when I get such a letter ...
The name of the letter is:
'Onderwerp: UEFA / Cwali (inbreuk op merken- en auteursrechten)'
I admit the part 'UEFA / Cwali' looks kind of cool to me, but there is something "unequal" in it.

Making a deal with UEFA about production/selling/logo's for an edition of the game? I'm interested in that. But merchandising games are always bad. At some point they think they can improve the game rules for their edition ... and then I don't want to loose the order, and then it will become as good as you expect from a merchandising game. I have experiences with that.

[Richard van Vugt | GAMEPACK.nl]

...I am always interested in seeing how the 'free' market works. What a sad story, Corné. This surely must take away a considerable amount of your energy that you could have better used elsewhere, in your games, for instance. I wish you the best of luck, and: 'Kill, kill, kill, those bastards!' :-)
As a side note: shouldn't this have had a better place in the Autorenforum?

[Cwali]

Yes, it takes much energy. Would be hard handle if such an 'issue' takes long. I got strange claims a few times before, but those were even more silly. With this soccer game I got a message long ago from someone who published a soccer game and wrote me that I should not publish it because he published a soccer game ...

But yesterday I got a message with 'De UEFA was geïnformeerd dat uw inbreukmakende product reeds daadwerkelijk op de markt werd gebracht.' And that the case is closed. No flowers yet.

[Ingo Althöfer]

Hi Corne,

> The name of the letter is:
> 'Onderwerp: UEFA / Cwali (inbreuk op merken- en
> auteursrechten)'
> I admit the part 'UEFA / Cwali' looks kind of cool to
> me, but there is something "unequal" in it.

Some years ago I had a similar - but different - experience
with Nina Hagen's management and lawyers. The headline of
their first letter was
"Nina Hagen / Dr. Ingo Althöfer".

Altogether the procedure cost me 380 Euro; but I learnt
a lot from it. The corresponding game got another name:
"Permission denied"
http://www.zillionsofgames.com/cgi-bin/zilligames/submissions.cgi?do=show;id=669

Good sellings!

Ingo.

[Cwali]

Case is closed. There was "no case" maybe, I worried for nothing, but hard to judge that quick in the middle of the production stress and the artist on vacation. It was not the UEFA self who searched for things to attack on. It was a "colleque" who saw things which didn't exist and made the UEFA worry. That colleque sent me an email long ago telling that I must not start to sell my game. Now he claims my game must get banned from Boardgamegeek. And that I 'stole from his game'. And that the Dutch player on the box should not have number 14, because that is Cruyff's number. (That's why the artist placed that number I suppose, I think that is nice.) And that the German player looks like Podolsky. That claim will make you laugh loud when you see it. It all makes that much sense, but it's really grazy which is dangerous.
I try to forget that now. Today I saw the big soccer fields, looks superb!
Only some things for the 4 games to punch tomorrow (I hope), packing/sealing next week I hope.

[peer]

Hi,
Good to know that it was "just" another case of trolling (so to speak).
all the best,
peer