Paris: Paris Saint Germain football club has demanded that British singer M.I.A. (pictured) remove images of its PSG jersey from her "Borders" music video which features refugees trying to get to Europe.
The singer on Monday published a copy of a legal letter she received from PSG's deputy chief executive Jean-Claude Blanc demanding she remove the images and compensate the Qatar-owned French league leaders for "harm suffered."
"So there's the case MIA vs PSG - discuss...", M.I.A. wrote on her Twitter account.
The letter says PSG had an "unpleasant surprise" when M.I.A. twice appeared in her latest music video wearing a jersey in which the PSG logo is clearly visible, as well as those of sponsors Nike and the Qatari National Bank.
The slogan "Fly Emirates" has been changed to "Fly Pirates".
The video of "Borders" shows images of migrants climbing fences and packed into boats in a commentary on the recent influx of people into Europe fleeing war and poverty.
"Borders, what's up with that? Politics, what's up with that? Police shots, what's up with that?" sings the British-Sri Lankan rapper, whose real name is Mathangi Arulpragasam.
"More than being surprised, we simply do not understand why we are associated, through our logo and the official jersey of our team's players, to such denunciation," reads the legal letter.
The letter lists social actions taken by the PSG Foundation such as helping poor and sick children and the donation of one million euros ($1.1 million) to French charities "in the context of the refugee crisis."
The club has accused M.I.A. of causing harm to their brand and gave the singer 24 hours to withdraw the video, stop using the PSG brand and compensate the club.
M.I.A. responded with an image of herself in the jersey and the hashtag #MIAvsPSG.
"Me and sports -- it's a love hate thing," wrote the singer who last year was sued by the US National Football League for $16.6 million after she extended her middle finger during a performance with Madonna at the 2014 Super Bowl.
ESPN later reported the singer and the NFL had reached a confidential settlement.
AFP
