The ad, which was brought before the Advertising Standards Authority, was headlined "Germany defeated. Now on to Japan. Sound familiar?", and made reference to England's defeat of Germany in the World Cup qualification rounds.
Several members of the public complained that the ad for "the Bottle of Britain", created by RPM3, made an irresponsible reference to the xenophobic rivalry between nations during World War II and that this would encourage football hooligans on their way to Japan.
Spitfire beer's manufacturer, Shepherd Neame, argued that the ad had appeared nine months before the final stages of the competition in Japan. It said that the ad was in keeping with the "nostalgic humour" of the Spitfire campaign and that the humour was no more xenophobic than international football rivalry, which was not based on a hatred of foreigners. It also argued that the rivalries of WWII were in the past and most readers of the Telegraph would not be offended.
The ASA ruled that the ad made a "light-heated reference to international football rivalry" and was unlikely to cause widespread offence.
Last month, the watchdog also found that an ad featuring the line, "The Krauts are coming... with unbeatable quality", for Dronco Abrasives, was also not likely to cause offence.
The Spitfire brand was originally produced in 1990 as a Battle of Britain commemorative brew. Its ads have appeared before the ASA earlier in the year, at which time the watchdog noted that no complaints had been received from Germans.
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