Merchandise rights force 1860 München to temporarily change club crest
| Photo: Vladimir Rys/Getty Images. |
TSV 1860 München have temporarily lost the rights to their crest, forcing the Bavarian club to reinstate an older historic logo instead.
The reason for the sudden change is due to the merchandising rights are still held by investor Hasan Ismaik’s company.
Although Ismaik's company continues to hold the rights to the name and logo, it is not permitted for commercial use purposes.
Therefore, a solution had to be found for the upcoming Regionalliga season. The following statement was released by 1860 Munich:
"Until the lion can once again be used without restrictions as the crest, the new operating company will temporarily use the historical FA crest.
"As soon as the legal requirements are met, the lion will once again be used as the crest of TSV 1860 Munich.
"In recent days, we have been frequently asked about the origin and meaning of the FA crest. Therefore, we have asked the club history department for a historical overview.
"According to research by Claus Melchior (club history department), the FA crest was first documented in 1919. However, no definitive information about its exact origins is available to date.
"Historical commemorative publications and team photos show that the lion has been the defining crest of the TSV 1860 Munich footballers since before the First World War.
“The FA crest is part of the history of our football department and is therefore being used during the current transition phase.”
