Football fans craving a Kit Kat, Snickers or Bounty snack at World Cup stadiums "need to do a bit of lateral thinking to get their chocolate fix," according to Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber of REUTERS. Rules protecting FIFA's sponsors and partners result in the branding of non-sponsors being "strictly policed inside all official venues." But stripped of their wrappers, Russia's stadium vending machines are "brimming" with "anonymous" snacks. If a fan selects "chocolate with crispy wafer," a Kit Kat will appear, while it is "not hard for them to guess" the brands behind a "chocolate bar with peanut caramel" or snack labeled "chocolate with coconut." Mars, the maker of Snickers and Bounty, said that it does not operate the vending machines but follows the law and FIFA rules, adding that it is "happy that thousands of consumers have the opportunity to enjoy the outstanding taste of our chocolate while watching the number one football competition." Meanwhile, Kit Kat manufacturer Nestle said that it "recognized the organizers' policies and had no further comment." World Cup organizers have "gone to great lengths to keep unaffiliated firms out of sight," such as concealing the brand names on the front and back of LG TV monitors in the press facilities with black tape (REUTERS, 6/20).
