JOHN TERRY IS taking legal advice after an image closely resembling the England captain appeared on cigarette packets in India.
The picture, which is part of an anti-smoking campaign, sits above the words ‘smoking kills’.
A spokesman for Elite Management, which represents Terry, said no permission had been given for the use of the Chelsea skipper’s image.
“It’s been brought to our attention that an image of our client (Terry) has been used on some cigarette packaging without our consent or knowledge. We’ve now instructed our legal team to investigate this matter,” a statement reads.
KS Dhatwalia, additional secretary of the Directorate of Visual Publicity, was quoted in the Indian Express (via the Guardian) as saying: “We sent the creative to the health ministry and they then cleared it and circulated it. But how Terry’s picture got to be used is not clear.”
Terry, meanwhile, is currently waiting to face a criminal charge of using racist language towards QPR defender Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League game in October.
He has vowed to fight it ‘tooth and nail’.