Photographer Sues Pelé Soccer Brand Over His Iconic Bicycle Kick Image

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Black-and-white photo of a soccer player doing a bicycle kick during a match, shown next to a T-shirt on a rack featuring the same iconic image.

A photographer who captured a defining image of late Brazilian soccer star Pelé performing a mid-air bicycle kick has filed a copyright lawsuit against the lifestyle brand Pelé Soccer.

The estate of Brazilian photographer Alberto Ferreira sued Pelé Soccer, a brand created in partnership with Pelé before his death in 2022, alleging that the company used Ferreira’s photograph without permission. The photo shows Pelé performing a mid-air bicycle kick during a 1965 friendly match between Brazil and Belgium.

Pelé is widely recognized as one of the greatest soccer players of all time, and one of his career highlights was the bicycle kick in that match. According to Rolling Stone, Ferreira’s photograph captures a career-defining moment from an otherwise unremarkable play. Brazil won the match 5–4, with Pelé scoring a hat trick.

Ferreira’s photograph shows Pelé upside-down, the ball rocketing off his leg at a 90-degree angle. Over time, the image has become iconic, helping to popularize the bicycle kick — known in Spanish as a “chilena” — in modern soccer.

Stacks of folded white t-shirts on a shelf, featuring a black-and-white print of a soccer player performing a bicycle kick with another player and a soccer ball visible in the background.

A black t-shirt hangs on a rack, printed with a vintage black-and-white image of a soccer player performing a bicycle kick as another player watches. Other t-shirts in various colors are visible in the background.

The photographer’s estate, managed by Ferreira’s son Antonio Carlos Ferreira Lima, has licensed the photo for use by various entities over the years. According to a report by Sportico, while the photograph is not registered with the U.S. Copyright Office, it is registered under the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, of which both Brazil and the U.S. are signatories. This means works created in member countries automatically receive copyright protection in other member countries. The complaint notes that because Ferreira first published the photograph in Brazil, it is exempt from U.S. copyright registration requirements.

In the lawsuit, filed in March in the Southern District of New York, Ferreira’s estate claims Pelé Soccer — which has stores in New York City, Anaheim, Miami, and Orlando — reproduced the photograph without a license to sell merchandise, including T-shirts and other apparel. The estate’s complaint alleges copyright infringement and violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which can carry damages of up to $150,000 per infringement.

Sportico reports that the estate is seeking an injunction to stop further sales using the photograph, as well as monetary damages that include profits generated through the alleged infringement. According to the complaint, the estate notified Pelé Soccer in March that its use of the photo was unauthorized. However, the estate says the company responded but continued to use the image.

Image credits: All photos via court documents.

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