The 42nd annual World Series of Poker main event begins Friday afternoon, and there are “a lot [fewer] logos for online poker sites such as PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker -- sites that shut down in April by the Justice Department,” according to Liz Benston of the LAS VEGAS SUN. Hats are “few and far between,” marking a change “from years past when baseball caps bearing poker logos were part of the typical poker-playing uniform.” Clothing also “veers toward the nondescript, with logo-free T-shirts and polo shirts.” New rules this year “prevent participants from wearing hats with logos of any kind -- from poker sites to a player’s favorite potato chips.” The rules also “prevent players from wearing more than one commercial logo per article of clothing.” Logos that are “more than 9 or 12 inches square also are prohibited.” WSOP Dir of Communications Seth Palansky said that the rule changes “have more to do with increasing broadcast restrictions around the world than the poker indictments.” Palansky added that some European countries “are preventing the use of commercial logos in their broadcasts.” Poker player Phil Hellmuth prior to a WSOP event this week was “told to remove a hat he was wearing" that featured a logo for Las Vegas casino Aria (LAS VEGAS SUN, 7/8).
