Rory McLeod of England plays a shot during his round two game on day ten of the Betfred.com World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre on April 25, 2011 in Sheffield, England.
Rory McLeod playing during the 2011 World Snooker Championship. McLeod's choice of sponsor has caused him to be criticised for supporting Islamist terrorism Michael Regan/Getty Images

Snooker player Rory McLeod has been forced to defend himself after he was shown wearing an badge with an "Isis" logo in Monday's Welsh Open match against Ronnie O'Sullivan.

Some social media users were quick to jump to the conclusion that the Muslim player was supporting the extremist Islamist group – even though McLeod's waistcoat bore the logo of his sponsor for the last 14 years: the accountancy firm Isis Business Solutions.

After Twitter users bombarded the 43-year-old with messages, he tweeted links to his sponsor's website.

While some Twitter users called the logo "an unfortunate coincidence", others seem genuinely outraged.

Others were surprised and confused, even though a quick Google search would have revealed that Isis Business Solutions are an accountancy firm from Wellingborough.

Other Twitter users slammed the "mind blowing stupidity" of those worried that McLeod supported the terror organisation.

Unfortunately for McLeod, he also lost the second-round match at Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena 4-2.

This is not the first occasion where an unfortunate link to Isis has made headlines, and even persuaded a business to rebrand.

After Lord Grantham's beloved Labrador Isis (named after the Egyptian goddess) was taken ill on the popular TV show Downton Abbey, some people assumed that she was about to be killed off due to her namesake rather than her old age.

Last September, British finance company Isis Equity Partners announced it was changing its name because it is "no longer prepared to share it with a terrorist organisation".

The same month, the US technology start-up Isis Wallet changed its name to Softcard.

In December, a US student was sent home after attending class wearing a T-shirt supporting fundraising efforts for female boxer Isis Strong, who has permanent neurological damage following a stroke.

More than 270 products and services have business names using the word "Isis", according to the US Patent and Trademark office. The actual figure may be even higher, as businesses are not required to register their names.

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