Bookmaker Paddy Power in hot soup for 'prejudiced' stunt

Paddy Power is known for its controversial PR stunts.

So, when a group of Chelsea fans appeared to prevent a black man from boarding a train in Paris recently, a light bulb went off in the bookmaker’s head.

Ahead of Sunday’s League Cup final between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, Paddy Power set up a stand at Wembley, claiming to give Chelsea fans the chance to “prove you’re not prejudiced”.

Apparently, taking a photo with a Sikh, a Muslim woman in a burka, a black man and a woman in wheelchair helps to send that message across.

Going by the reactions on Twitter, it wasn’t quite well received.

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One going by the username of Mark R tweeted:

Another named Chelsea HQ wrote: 

The betting firm is not new to complaints.

In 2002, they ran an advertisement that placed odds on whether two elderly women could reach the other side of the road without getting knocked down by an approaching truck.

The campaign was eventually banned by watchdogs.

Sources: Mirror Online, The Guardian