The UEFA Women’s EURO football championship is taking place in Switzerland from 2 to 27 July. In addition to the matches, artwork will also be on display on the pitch. Body art isn’t just a means of self-expression – it can also raise legal questions. For example, in 2022, two software companies had to pay a US tattoo artist damages totalling 3,750 dollars. The companies had recreated some of the wrestler Randy Orton’s tattoos in the video game series ‘WWE 2K’ without the artist’s permission.

So what’s the legal situation in Switzerland? Tattoos can be protected by copyright if they’re intellectual creations with individual character (Art. 2 para. 1 Copyright Act, CopA). This means that not all tattoos are protected – only those that are individual. The more unique the design, the more likely it is to be legally protected. Standard tattoos (with no special, individual features) that depict popular motifs such as anchors, feathers, hearts, angel wings or roses are unlikely to be protected. Simple tattoos of names, symbols or dates are also not eligible for protection. In the event of a dispute, a court would have to decide whether a tattoo is sufficiently individual.

The software companies had to pay compensation to the artist in the aforementioned case because they hadn’t obtained permission (a licence) to use the tattoo in the video game. The tattoo artist is considered the author (copyright holder) and can therefore assert their intellectual property rights. This includes, for example, the right to offer, transfer or otherwise distribute copies of a work, for example in the context of a computer game (Art. 10 para. 2 let. c CopA). If you want to use a tattoo in this way, you must obtain a licence from the artist. This should be considered in particular (but not only!) if you plan on using it commercially. However, this rule isn’t absolute, as copyright law also recognises certain exceptions. Art. 28 para. 1 CopA states, for example, that, where it is necessary for reporting current events, the works perceived in such reports can be fixed, reproduced, presented, broadcast, distributed or otherwise made perceptible. If a Swiss television broadcaster reports on a match and the players’ tattoos are visible, it doesn’t have to obtain permission from the tattoo artist for this use.