War for trademark registration at the Olympic Games. The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee (Usopc) has filed a lawsuit against Puma for trademark infringement and deceptive business practices.
Usopc alleges that the German sports equipment group has “declared war” on its Olympics brands, specifically those related to trademarks Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022 Y Paris 2024, informs Sports Business Journal.
The sports equipment manufacturer has the legal capacity to sponsor Olympic athletes, but Only members of the global TOP sponsorship program of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have the right to use the official marks of the Games.
According to the judicial file, Usopc is “required to protect Olympic intellectual property in the United States for the benefit of the Olympic Movement, ”considering that Puma’s infringement of these trademarks undermines one of the main sources of funding for Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
The lawsuit states that “a free system for all in which any company could associate its products with the brands of the Games or the Olympic brand dilute the value of Usopc sponsorships“, In addition to directly affecting the ability of US Olympians to” obtain the necessary support to represent the United States in the Olympic Games “, in a practice that qualifies as ambush marketing.
Usopc sues Puma to protect Olympic intellectual property and the rights of its athletes
The agency alleges that Puma companies “have distributed, sold, promoted, licensed and / or publicized specially manufactured garments that include or present the infringing trademarks”, after applying for registration, before the US Patent and Trademark Office (Uspto , for its acronym in English), brands such as Puma Tokyo 2021, Puma Tokyo 2022, Puma Beijing 2022 Y Puma Paris 2024. A registration application that was denied due to possible confusion with the Usopc trademarks.
At the same time, the German company has fought back by filing multiple trademark cancellation requests against Usopc’s own gaming trademark registrations, which are still pending resolution.
Usopc defends that it has presented the lawsuit against Puma “to stop their unjust attacks against the United States team and athletes around the world,” accusing her of working to “intentionally cut critical funding for athletes’ training and programs.” ”We will not stand aside while Puma violates rights created to allow us to support the dreams of American athletes to compete in the Olympic and Paralympic Games ”, sentence.
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