Accra, Aug. 7, GNA - The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has warned MTN mobile telephone network to stop advertisements with images of key Black Stars players currently running on the Ghana VS Nigeria international friendly scheduled for August 9, 2011 in London.

The GFA has also directed its lawyers to take all necessary steps to protect GLO Mobile Ghana and other sponsors of the Football Association from any future ambush marketing.

"This is a serious infringement on the marketing and advertising rights of the Official Communication sponsor of the Black Stars and so we call on the management of MTN to put a stop to it and to render an unqualified apology to the Ghana Football Association and GLO Ghana Limited," the GFA said in a statement signed by its Deputy General Secretary, Mr Issac Addo, copied GNA in Accra on Sunday.

The statement said the Association would advise itself on the next pla= n of action should MTN fail to accede to the call.

In 2008, following the acquisition of an operating licence in Ghana, Globacom, the African telecommunications giant, signed a record-breaking $24 million five-year sponsorship agreement with the GFA, which made Glo the title sponsor of the Ghana Premier League as well as the headline sponsor of the Ghana national team 96 the Black Stars. Under the agreement, Glo has since 2009, supported the Black Stars wit= h a cash donation of $1.5 million every year.

In return, the GFA, among other things grants Glo total exclusivity in the telecommunications category of the sponsorship and is enjoined by the terms of the agreement to protect the marketing and communication interests of Glo particularly from undue ambushing.

The sponsorship agreement categorically states in its third Article that: 91 No other company or entity engaged in the business of telecommunications including but not limited to GSM, CDMA, FIXED Telephony, ISPs, Broadband, Satellite, Undersea Submarine Cable etc shall be allowed t= o Associate with Black Stars in any form or manner whether directly or indirectly through any form of advertising or display or publicity etc in any platform whatsoever associated with Black Stars and further that Black Stars and the GFA shall be associated either directly or indirectly with an= y make, brand, company, or entity that competes or conflicts with GLO or entities that may be associated with any of the competitors of GLO.' Analysts say the crux of the issue, therefore, is that MTN adopted an illegitimate marketing method to organise a promotion to stimulate its business and generate profit where it has not invested anything. MTN is ambushing - reaping dividends where it has not sown a dime, and in all fairness to Glo, the headline sponsors of the Ghana Black Stars, and any other sponsors and they ought to be punished, at least to safeguard the quality and future of sports sponsorship in the country.

Sports critics have expressed concern that if such blatant violations of sponsorship agreements are encouraged, it could have a tellin= g effect on the future of corporate sponsorship for sports in Ghana. The future as well as the quality of corporate sponsorship in Ghana could suffer drastically if benefits expected to accrue to sponsors continue to be whittled away through such ambushing.