Charges against Dutch mini-dress women dropped (photos)

Charges against two Dutch women accused of an "ambush marketing" stunt at a World Cup match were dropped today.

The women walked free from Johannesburg Magistrates' Court after a settlement was reached.

Barbara Castelein, 29, and Mirthe Nieuwpoort, 30, faced charges under the Merchandise Marks Act and the Special Measures Regulations.

They were accused of the "unauthorised use of a trade mark at a protected event" and "entry into a designated area while in possession of a prohibited commercial object".

They were arrested on June 16 after a group of 36 women were ejected from Soccer City in Johannesburg at the match between Holland and Denmark two days before.

The women appeared in outfits to promote a Dutch brand of beer, Bavaria, which is not one of the official sponsors.

Dutch foreign minister Maxime Verhagen said it was "outrageous" for the women to be arrested over the wearing of orange dresses.

But in a joint statement posted on the Fifa website today, the tournament organisers and the beer company said: "Bavaria NV and Fifa have today reached a settlement agreement, which means that all parties have agreed to drop any claims and also not to make any further comments related to this matter.

"The Bavaria NV has agreed to fully respect the integrity of Fifa's commercial programme until the end of the year 2022."

The women said: "We are happy to go home and that the situation has been resolved."

Both parties declined to disclose any further details about the settlement.

The women were forced to hand over their passports and post bail of 10,000 rand (£890) each following their arrests.

As the decision was announced at court today they reportedly kissed each another with relief. They were presented with a bunch of orange and yellow roses by supporters.

Football pundit Robbie Earle was fired by ITV after seats allocated to him were used in the stunt.

The former Wimbledon and Port Vale player said he had no connection to any ambush marketing agency and had not profited in any way from the tickets.

Earle told the Mail on Sunday ITV supplied him with 400 World Cup tickets and was aware they were for a third party.

Last week Fifa posted a lengthy explanation for taking action on the "ambush marketing" stunt.

It followed intense criticism of the organisation that their response had been heavy handed.

The organisation emphasised the women were not "normal" Dutch supporters.

Fifa said the stunt was "a well-organised and planned operation, whereby at least two co-ordinators were flown in from the Netherlands to organise this ambush activity for a well-known beer company".

It added: "The girls were given match tickets obtained from an unauthorised source and were used in a marketing stunt inside the stadium which contravenes the event regulations and South African legislation.

"The operation was sophisticated enough to include a decoy team, which was sent to the commercial display area to distract the attention of the stadium authorities from the area where the main group was going in."