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Manchester United and England defender, Harry Maguire, has claimed that the Conservative Party did not seek his permission to use a photo of himself and his partner in a political advert.
The Telegraph report that the Conservatives used the well-known image to highlight the publication of the long-awaited Football Governance Bill.
The outlet states that the government “used a famous photograph of Maguire talking to his then girlfriend, now his wife, Fern Hawkins, after England’s memorable round-of-16 win over Colombia, after a penalty shoot-out, in Moscow in the 2018 World Cup. Maguire is seen leaning forward and talking to Hawkins and the image has been used as a ‘meme’ on social media”.
The photo in question is attached to a tweet following the publication of the long-awaited Football Governance Bill earlier this week which will lead to the establishment of an independent Football Regulator.
“The photo is accompanied by a caption which reads: ‘Rishi said any League with me in it would be Super always’.
“Rishi said any League with me in it would be Super anyways” pic.twitter.com/Ci4FT3umu1
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) March 19, 2024
“The tweet refers to the Government claiming the Bill contains plans to prevent a future European Super League breakaway”.
Speaking on the issue Maguire stated, “no, I haven’t seen it”. He was then asked whether permission had been sought from him to use the photo in this political context.
“No, they have had no permission. I didn’t even know about the advert to be honest, so, I will have a look after this”.
The Telegraph clarifies the matter by stating, “political parties do not have to seek approval to use such images – the copyright belongs to the photographer – but they have faced demands in the past for them to be withdrawn by individuals not happy with the context”.
The 31 year old has enjoyed a much more productive season this year in comparison to last.
Maguire was often left on the bench in Erik ten Hag’s first season as Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane were clearly the Dutchman’s first choice pairing.
The club stripped him of his captaincy in the summer and even agreed a fee with West Ham to sell the player, but he ended up choosing to stay with the Red Devils.
An injury crisis in defence and Maguire’s own form allowed the player to fight his way back into the team and whilst not being a regular starter, he has contributed much more regularly this season.
In fact, his performances were so strong in November that he actually won the Premier League Player of the Month award.
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