Top tips when running a promotion in Russia, World Cup Style!

With next year’s FIFA World Cup hosted by Russia gradually looming, are you planning to run a promotion in Russia and do you know the correct rules?

Despite being the 21^st tournament this is the first time in history that a World Cup is going to be located in Eastern Europe, therefore this it’s a great and unique opportunity to run promotions in this region that capture the excitement that only the biggest single-sporting competition on the planet creates every four years.

Fancy running a promotion in Russia?

In general, competitions are completely legal, as long as they require a skill. Prize draws are also legal as long as they comply with advertising laws, civil laws and personal datat laws. It is also important to be mindful of cultural differences and practices when running a promotion in a country as unique as Russia.

Here are the main things to consider when running a promotion in Russia.

• Gambling and lotteries are outlawed but prize draws are actually fine to run
• Games of skill or competitions are allowed too
• All Terms & Conditions must be translated in to Russian first
• No registrations are required but taxes do apply.
• The tax only applies on prizes over a value of 4000 Russian Rubles
• Be sure to be up to date on Russia’s strict Data Privacy laws
• Russia’s Localisation Law does not allow data to be handled outside of Russia itself therefore, you can’t run a promotion, on Facebook for example, unless the servers are on Russian soil.

World Cup Promotions

If you are planning to run a promotion that is connected to the 2018 FIFA World Cup it is vital to note that FIFA and organisations that are associated with them are the legal owners and hold the rights of any competitions. These rights include financial rights, audio-visual and radio recordings, reproduction, broadcasting, marketing, promotional rights and more!

Despite this, such a globally renowned sporting event makes it worth trying to leverage some of the excitement by using promotions to gain recognition for your brand or product.

During the 2014 World Cup, Nike’s social media presence became hugely uplifted because of a marketing video that they released, and they soon became the most recognised brand of the entire World Cup. But beware if you are not a sponsor. You could be penalised for trying to ‘join the party’ if you haven’t paid the entrance fee. So, what do you need to know?

Our top 5 tips for running a World Cup promotion if you are not a sponsor.

1. Do not attempt to use the FIFA World Cup trademarks as the CAP Code does not allow you to be tied into or related to the event.
2. Do not offer tickets to consumers as non sponsors do not have the permission!
3. Partner up with the teams, if they do not break FIFA rules.
4. Opt for interactive mechanics (vouchers/codes) – to create an engaging nature.
5. Be creative – try and utilise the theme of football to your advantage but without using FIFA’s protected logos, words, symbols and trademarks.
6. Ambush marketing – Sense check your promotion with PromoVeritas to ensure it isn’t going to get you into trouble

So if you’re considering running a promotion in Russia, or anywhere in the world, or if you are planning a world cup promotion speak to PromoVeritas for advice first.

Contact us at info@promoveritas.com or call +44 203 325 6000.