Next month Germany will sue the European Commission to overturn its decision to move up the deadline to ban tobacco print ads and sports sponsorships. The ban had been set to take effect in October 2006; European Union leaders voted to begin the ban in August 2005. Germany and the U.K. voted against the change, citing a 1998 law that lets EU countries decide for themselves whether to allow tobacco ads until 2006, Bloomberg reports.
Formula One racetrack Nurburgring joins the German chancellor’s office in filing the suit, and the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile has threatened its own suit. Five of the top 10 Formula One teams have tobacco sponsors; teams are likely to forego races in countries where tobacco ads are banned, per Bloomberg.
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