On 12 October, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the international governing body of football, announced new rules on the use of digital images taken during the 2006 World Cup final in Germany.

According to the new rules, electronic media will only be allowed to use digital images after the expiration of one hour from the end of a football match.

While it is expected that the FIFA ruling will not affect the print media, publishers with websites receiving live pictures from agencies or staff photographers will have to abide by the new rules.

Commenting on the new rules, IPI Director Johann P. Fritz said, “IPI fully supports the initiative undertaken by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) on this issue. The embargo endangers the right of editors to inform their readers and for media organisations to comment on important news events.”

“Next to the Olympics, the World Cup is arguably the world’s most important sports event and I think it is a shame that FIFA is seeking to control photos in this clumsy and rather pointless manner.”

“As well as entertainment, sport is also news and, as a by-product of their reporting, the electronic news media generates considerable free publicity for football, particularly during the World Cup.”

“I would like to see a greater appreciation on FIFA’s part that the news media have a perfect right to report on news events as they happen and that this reporting does not threaten agreements concerning the commercial rights to football.”

“If FIFA were to decide otherwise, there is a real danger that a precedent would be set for preventing access to information and excluding the media from reporting on legitimate news events,” said Fritz.

“It should be remembered that press freedom and the rights of the news media to practice their profession unhindered should not be bargained away by virtue of a commercial contract.”