Who says only gameplay requires creativity? Just look at the 49ers stadium as they complied with FIFA’s strict rules yet found a creative loophole with their Batwing logo during the Qatar vs. Switzerland match on Saturday.

The Instagram post shared a video of the stadium’s name being covered by a white sheet. To make things even more interesting, the post used TikTok’s viral Nobody’s Gonna Know audio in the background. Even the official Instagram account updated its profile icon, replacing the Levi’s logo with a white sheet against a red background.

“Welcoming the world to the beautiful [redacted] stadium!” Levi’s wrote in the caption, taking a subtle jab at FIFA’s restrictions. 

It’s a response to clause 6.4.ii of the nearly 100-page contract between the stadiums and FIFA. According to this clause, the stadiums agreed to do no advertisements, marketing, promotions, merchandising, licensing, signage, or any other commercial identification anywhere in the stadiums. FIFA also requires venues to remove all pre-existing branding to protect its own brands and the exclusive rights of its sponsors. Only entities associated with FIFA are permitted to engage in branding and advertising at tournament venues.

“FIFA will determine the official names of the Stadium and Training Sites for the Competition and change the name of the Stadium and the Training Sites for any purposes in relation to the Competition to any non-commercial name that it deems appropriate, without any reference to the naming rights sponsor, owner, or user of the Stadium,” the contract states. 

For the duration of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, stadiums will be referred to by their host cities. As a result, Levi’s Stadium was renamed San Francisco Bay Area Stadium. The change did not sit well with many locals, given that the venue is located in Santa Clara, California, about 40 miles from San Francisco.

The stadium has a capacity of around 68,500 and is well known as the home for Super Bowl 50 and WrestleMania 31. It also hosted Super Bowl LX this year. Yet, it can’t even highlight its biggest sponsor, Levi Strauss & Co., whose total market value is hovering around $8.8 billion. 

The Athletic highlighted that the same trend was seen inside Levi’s Stadium’s press box. A black tape covered the branding on about 23 condiment bottles. However, companies like Coca-Cola, Visa, Adidas, etc., sponsor FIFA with massive amounts of money, which brings them free exposure inside the stadiums during the tournament.

Billions of people watch FIFA events, and every second of brand visibility can be worth millions to companies. But was Levi’s Stadium the only venue affected by FIFA’s Clean Stadium policy? Not quite.

FIFA has brought similar changes to other NFL stadiums

Lumen Technologies, the brand associated with the Seattle Seahawks stadium, has installed the word “LUMEN” on top of Lumen Field. The letters span about 300 feet across the stadium’s roof, and at night they glow. However, to accommodate the FIFA World Cup, officials had to cover the word on the roof, along with other signage in the vicinity that reads “LUMEN.”

MetLife Stadium has also removed the ‘MetLife’ branding from the stadium. But the one thing that worried locals was the cup holders installed behind the seats. With more than 80,000 cup holders in the stadium, renaming the entire venue would cost a significant amount of money. Hence, the host committee pushed back. 

The Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium also had to change its name to Dallas Stadium. On top of that, Jerry Jones had to put up a tint on the eastern and western sides and block the glare during the late afternoon games. 

Of course, the international tournament brings unparalleled global attention and massive tourism revenue, but American stadium operators are learning that hosting the world’s biggest game requires completely surrendering their own corporate identities at the door.