In a battle between David and Goliath, the might of UEFA were taking on a small pizzeria in the German town of Giessen.
The European football governing body had been moved to take legal action, because one of the dishes offered by the pizzeria is called Champignons League. However, they have now decided to drop it.
The menu option offered by the restaurant – a pizza topped with mozzarella cheese and mushrooms – has caused outrage in the corridors of power in UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. They claim it infringes the trademark of their elite competition, the Champions League.
In German, the name of the dish translates to 'mushroom league'. However, that had not stopped UEFA from taking action because of the links to their completion.
A redacted version of the letter they received from UEFA confirming their intention to take action had been shared on social media by the pizzeria’s owners.
UEFA’s legal department confirmed their plans when contacted by a German news agency. They emphasised that they would stop at nothing to protect what they regard as exclusively belonging to them.
For the owners, it has proved to be a heaven sent marketing opportunity. They have apparently been revelling in the free publicity. They have been using the legal action to advertise their pizza, claiming to offer the world’s hottest mushroom pizza.
Fans have been supportive of Pizza Wolke on social media as well, claiming the UEFA are out of touch with reality and have lost all sense of perspective. One quipped that that, if forced to rename, the restaurant should choose the epithet the European Super League.
Sales of the pizza are reported to have soared with customers flocking to order as long as it is available.
Pizza Wolke, in addition to running their popular small restaurant, have also expanded into supermarkets across Germany. More than 2,000 retailers have stocked their frozen range. More than 300,000 pizzas have been sold since December 2020. To cope with the demand, they have had to hire additional production capacity.
Thanks to UEFA, they can expect demand to soar even more.