Sports events and ambush marketing in Guatemala

Following the 2026 FIFA World Cup, so-called ambush marketing once again moved to the centre of the legal and commercial debate in Latin America. During the tournament, competitors across multiple industries sought to participate in the intense marketing activity surrounding the event, reinforcing the discussion around compliance with the applicable Intellectual Property rules and the protection of the rights of FIFA and its sponsors.

The World Cup experience also left relevant lessons for future sporting events and other mass-attendance events, particularly in jurisdictions such as Guatemala, which do not have specific regulations governing ambush marketing.

During the first weeks of April 2026, the latest amendments to Mexico’s Federal Law for the Protection of Industrial Property were published. Among the most significant changes was the incorporation of provisions aimed at preventing ambush marketing[1].

This concept, known in Spanish as "mercadeo de emboscada", consists of creating a false impression that a brand is officially associated with or sponsors an event when no such relationship exists.[2]

The reform introduced the following conduct as an administrative infringement in Mexico:

"Carrying out, in the course of industrial or commercial activities, acts that cause or induce the public into confusion, error or deception by leading them to believe or assume without grounds: (…) The existence of an official sponsorship relationship between a distinctive sign and a public or private mass-attendance event."[3]

Mexican law therefore sanctions, with significant fines, conduct that wrongly or falsely leads the public to believe that an official sponsorship relationship exists with an event. This requires competitors that are not official sponsors to devise more creative marketing strategies and avoid direct references that could create such an impression.

This development represents a significant milestone in the evolution of Intellectual Property rules in Latin America, particularly when compared with the regulations currently in force in other countries in the region.

The position in Guatemala

Guatemala does not have specific regulations prohibiting ambush marketing, which has important implications for event organisers, sponsors and competitors.

Instead, the legal framework provides mechanisms that offer only partial protection against these practices. For example, an infringement action allows a trademark owner to bring a claim against the unauthorised use of its mark.[4] Similarly, an unfair competition action may be used to challenge conduct that creates confusion or a risk of association with another party’s trademark.[5]

The principal limitation of Guatemalan law is that these actions are centred on the protection of registered or well-known trademarks, rather than on the protection of a mass-attendance event and its sponsors as such.

On the one hand, this requires organisers to hold a registered trademark or make a substantial investment in positioning the event’s brand until it becomes well known. On the other, it weakens the protection available to event sponsors that do not benefit from such trademark protection.

However, this does not mean that non-sponsoring competitors are free to engage in ambush marketing. Sponsors and organisers may still invoke the well-known status of the distinctive signs identifying the event to support claims of infringement or unfair competition.

Implications for future events

The experience of the 2026 FIFA World Cup highlights the importance of having a sponsorship relationship that expressly authorises marketing activities connected with a sporting event or any other type of event.

Where no such authorisation exists, it is advisable to rely on advertising strategies based on general references and to avoid direct or indirect references that the public could interpret as an attempt to associate with the event’s official brands.

Looking ahead to future tournaments, performances and mass-attendance events, organisers, sponsors and companies will need to assess more carefully the use of distinctive signs, thematic references, promotional campaigns and advertising messages that may create the perception of an official relationship where none exists.

Alegalis has a team specialising in Corporate Law and Intellectual Property, prepared to advise on the structuring of sponsorship arrangements and compliance with the rules applicable to companies’ advertising strategies.

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