Bookies facing court over Becks pics

SPANISH football giant Real Madrid has launched a fresh attack on a host of British gambling companies, including Ladbrokes and William Hill, in a bid to stop them using images of its club and players to promote online football betting.

The case is being closely watched by all the major European clubs, including Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea. A large number of Spanish clubs have lent their support to the country's richest team. Real has filed lawsuits for a case that will be heard in Paris on 12 May and will also include Betfair and Sportingbet, Betandwin and MrBookmaker as defendants.

The initial claim does not include a figure for compensation but it is believed the team is keen to win damages. Some analysts have suggested it wants to draft contracts so that major companies would have to pay them to use images of its players on their websites.

Real's case centres on the alleged exploitation of the club image and the rights of star players David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Raul and Luis Figo. Real is also bringing a case in Belgium against the companies, and others including Victor Chandler.

A spokesman for Ladbrokes said: 'All parties served with this writ by lawyers acting on behalf of Real Madrid are united in their opposition to it. We strongly deny the allegations made and intend to rigorously contest them in court.'

In a business generating millions from turnover each year, the rapidly-growing online gambling industry has unsurprisingly attracted the attention of leading clubs. Faced with falling television revenues and ever-higher wage bills, they are looking for new areas to generate income and stay at the top.

Experts are divided over whether Real Madrid will win this case. Clubs have not had all the running in similar disputes in the past.

Just five months ago, the European Court of Justice ruled that football associations in Europe could not claim copyright payments for use of football fixtures by betting outlets in other member states.

Football clubs had tried to claim that they 'owned' the results of their matches. However, the court ruled against them.

In the current case, betting companies say they are not implying the teams or players featured on their websites are endorsing their products. Some have already withdrawn the images but others are still using them and claim they are entitled to, just as newspapers and magazines are.

Although there are some differences between how the writs are being served in the jurisdictions of Paris and Belgium, they essentially make the same allegations. It is thought that another case is pending against the websites in the German courts.

Besides the British companies, defendants in the Paris case include French state-run national lottery Les Francaise des Jeux and Spanish outfit miapuesta.com.