Unless you’ve been living on the moon, you may well be aware of this little old event called The World Cup, which has been trickling like a gentle torrent into our lives over the past month.

Predictably, all sorts of brands have been jumping on the football bandwagon, with official sponsors battling it out with the ambush marketers.

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One interesting squabble that has emerged is between Mars and KitKat in the UK. Mars Inc famously launched an unofficial piece of ambush marketing during the 2006 World Cup, spending GBP3.7m on “Believe” branding, without paying the FA for an official licence.

The chocolate brand replaced its name on the packaging with “Believe” from April until July to indicate support for the England national football team. 

Fast forward to 2010 and now Mars is the proud holder of an FA licence – having signed up to be an official supplier to the England team.

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Meanwhile, rival Nestlé has embarked on its own ambush with Kit Kat’s “Fingers crossed” campaign, encouraging members of the public to cross their fingers for England to wish the team luck and send them to victory in the World Cup (fat lot of good that did!). This was supported by an on-pack promotion that offers a cash prize of £1,000 every day from May through to the 11 July.

Mars is (somewhat hypocritically) peeved with Nestlé’s behaviour and has threatened legal action. They believe Nestlé is guilty of “passing off” an association with the England team, despite not being an official sponsor.

The Mars rage is probably not helped by the fact that its TV spot which resurrects John Barnes’ rap in New Order’s ‘World in Motion’ song (20 years after its first airing) had little resonance. 

The chocolate bar fared better with its new wrapper design, featuring the England flag, although this sparked a negative reaction from consumers in Scotland, who were less than pleased to show their support for their nation’s football rivals south of the border.

Mars has found some consolation in a partnership with fellow official FIFA World Cup sponsor McDonald’s, with the fast-food chain serving a Mars Milkshake – a limited-edition amalgamation of ice cream, milk and chocolate which is only available during the World Cup.

At 515 calories a pop, they give you around a quarter of your daily recommended calories. Combined with a Big Mac (490 calories) and a large serving of fries (416 calories) then you are three quarters of your way to your day’s quota in one quick and easy meal. Do you think that’s how Rooney gets all his energy?

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