Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry and Chicago Bears safety Major Wright were among several NFL players whose likenesses were used in a porn promo.
National Football League attorneys are investigating the matter after Berry, Wright, San Diego Chargers top draft pick Corey Liuget, Brandon Flowers of the Kansas City Chiefs and Jacoby Ford of the Oakland Raiders appeared in an advertisement for the EXXXOTICA Expo held in Miami last month.
The advertisement featured the players in their uniforms along with several porn stars, a violation of NFL licensing rules.
“The NFL office works on behalf of the clubs to protect their intellectual property rights in matters such as this,” said NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy.
“This is an improper use of team marks and the Chicago Bears are not associated with this ad. Many times players themselves are unaware of the violation and companies simply pull images and make ads not realizing they are in violation,” said Chicago Bears spokesperson Jim Christman.
Wright issued an apology through his agent Mitch Frankel, saying, “I had no knowledge and never would have given authority for my name or likeness to be associated with Exxxotica Expo 2011.”
Frankel said Wright never gave anyone permission to use his likeness while wearing his Chicago Bears uniform.
Club Play general manager Lia Ames said the flier promoted three separate and unrelated events occurring on the same night, including the Exxxotica Expo.
Ames said she personally apologized to Wright for any misunderstanding. She also said the popular club, which relies on promotional materials to draw customers, will avoid potentially misleading promotions in the future.
Here’s a photo of the poster that included Berry, Wright, Liuget, Flowers and Ford. Below is a video of the Exxxotica Expo promo.
