Jose Mourinho to Manchester United: Chelsea demand 'several million pounds' to sell rights to Mourinho's name
Mourinho's move to United has been held up by a dispute over his image rights
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester United may be forced to pay Chelsea millions of pounds in order to buy the rights to Jose Mourinho and complete their appointment of the former Blues manager as Louis van Gaal’s successor, with a financial minefield currently holding up the completion of his move to Old Trafford.
Mourinho and his agent, Jorge Mendes, agreed terms with United on Tuesday for the Portuguese to take over as manager, but the move has been held up after it emerged that Chelsea still own the trademark for Mourinho and have done since 2006.
Chelsea still hold the rights to three separate trademarks including the right to print Mourinho’s image on any merchandise, ranging from scarves and mugs to teddy bears and lingerie. Chelsea no longer hold the rights to Mourinho’s signature though, with that particular trademark expiring in January this year – a month after he was dismissed by the London club.
The three outstanding trademarks don’t expire until between 2023 and 2025 though, and with United needing to negotiate a deal with Chelsea to release the image rights for Mourinho, The Times claims Chelsea are holding out for a seven-figure sum.
It’s added that United will push ahead with plans to announce Mourinho as their manager on Thursday despite the disagreement, although the club will not be able to produce any merchandise with the Portuguese on it – denying the club millions in potential income.
While both Inter Milan and Real Madrid have been given the green light to use Mourinho’s image when he joined them, United will not be given the same grace, and to make matters more complicated United want to hold the trademark outright themselves, meaning that further negotiations are needed with Chelsea.
United are keen to move forward with plans to complete his appointment on Thursday, with the Independent aware that a deal has been reached with the 53-year-old that will see him paid £10m-a-year plus bonuses.
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