Burger King has a started an uproar in Belgium by asking who is the true king in new ad https://t.co/ATxbpOZSuj pic.twitter.com/bf5dMz8q7h
— Business Insider (@businessinsider) May 29, 2017
Burger King's latest ad campaign is definitely not going as well as they hoped.
The burger chain has managed to piss off Philippe, the king of Belgium, with a website that asks visitors to vote between King Philippe or Burger King with the question "Who is the King?"
The site was meant to be a fun marketing stunt ahead of the release of Belgium's first-ever Burger King at the end of June, and fans have until June 19 to cast their vote, but the site may get taken down before that, based on the reaction from the royal family.
A royal spokesperson told BBC that King Philippe is not down with the campaign and that "since it is for commercial purposes, we would not have given our authorization." Belgium law requires that a company must contact the royal family if they wish to use a picture of the monarchy, even if it is in cartoon form like it is on the site, so Burger King's campaign might technically be illegal.
Burger King told Reuters that they are looking into the situation and "deliberating on how to proceed" as a result of the Royal Family's remarks.
Considering the King of Belgium probably doesn't want to give up his crown to a fast food mascot, even if it is a fictional scenario, there's a good chance Burger King is gonna lose this battle.
