Lufthansa hitches a ride on the football express

A recent trip through Germany's Munich airport revealed a country in the grip of football fever as it prepares for the 2006 World Cup in June.

And the host nation's flag carrier Lufthansa has joined the frenzy by painting a football motif on the nosecones of 40 of its aircraft (pictured).

But if you were thinking that Lufthansa must be one of the 15 official sponsors of the World Cup, you'd be wrong. Emirates is in fact the official airline of the FIFA tournament. But that's not stopping Lufthansa associating with the World Cup and reaping the rewards of that relationship without having to pay any of the costs.

Lufthansa says the idea "was simple but at the same time an ingenious way to express the company's links to football".

Lufthansa calls its idea ingenious, though some might call it shrewd. And not only is the carrier painting the noses of its aircraft, it has also launched GloBall Airpass to get you between matches, and "football chefs" for the onboard catering. These chefs include Italian star chef Pugliese, who will look after the German national team during the cup.

And this is not a new phenomenon. The UK is currently looking at laws to prevent this "ambush marketing" in time for the London Olympics in 2012.

And there are plenty of examples of airlines sponsoring football. Emirates is sponsor of the new Arsenal stadium in London. Flybe is the current shirt sponsor for other soccer clubs Birmingham City and Exeter City Football Clubs, and Malaysian low-cost carrier AirAsia sponsors Manchester United Football Club.