Stewart in motion, taken by the writer
Unrivaled is a 3-on-3 basketball league based by WNBA superstars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart. The league has attracted many established WNBA stars, like Ms. Stewart, in addition to up-and-coming younger gamers like Paige Bueckers, who signed a deal to play in Unrivaled even earlier than she was chosen as the first general choose in the 2025 WNBA draft. Unrivaled performed its first season in early 2025 close to Miami, Florida, and is at the moment in the midst of its second season. Although most of the video games throughout the 2026 season have once more been performed close to Miami, this previous weekend, Unrivaled performed a few of its video games in Philadelphia, with record-setting crowds highlighting the broad curiosity in this new league.
Unrivaled moved shortly to guard the mental property related to the league, but it surely has encountered obstacles almost as powerful as the protection of Aliyah Boston (who, as of this writing, leads Unrivaled gamers in rebounds and blocks per recreation). The league has tried to register, amongst different marks, UNRIVALED (Serial No. 98532992); UNRIVALED U (Serial No. 98655635), and the design mark (Serial No. 98655628). The USPTO has refused to register the marks and, as of this writing, has suspended additional motion on the purposes. It seems that the league is operating up towards the registered UNRIVALED mark owned by Penn State University (Registration No. 4708398) and the USPTO’s considerations of a probability of confusion between the marks. Not solely that, however the basketball league has needed to deal with earlier-filed, pending purposes for marks like UNRIVALED JOY (Serial No. 98248754), UNRIVALED YOUTH SPORTS (Serial No. 98458632), and UNRIVALED BASEBALL (Serial No. 98458635).
It shouldn’t be sure whether or not the league tried to “clear” UNRIVALED earlier than selecting the title of the league, i.e., checking whether or not the title conflicted with present emblems. It is feasible the league proceeded realizing that registering UNRIVALED marks could be a tricky battle, however that naming the league “Unrivaled” was essential sufficient to offer it a strive, even when the odds have been so long as a half-court shot. Although it stays to be seen how this challenge seems, as of now, it seems like the league’s makes an attempt to register variations of its title will encounter protection that even Marina Mabrey (Unrivaled’s factors per recreation chief as of this writing) wouldn’t have the ability to overcome.
The league has additionally encountered stout protection in its try and register the design mark (Serial No. 99086262). On January 29, 2026, the USPTO analyzing legal professional issued a non-final motion, asserting, amongst different issues, that this colour mark can’t be registered as a result of, typically talking, colours are usually not distinctive. The analyzing legal professional cited, amongst different authorities, to a current choice from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on that entrance. The league has three months to reply.
The league has to date had higher luck with its purposes to register marks that don’t embrace the phrase “unrivaled.” These embrace CROWN THE ONE (Serial No. 99048880; revealed on June 24, 2025 and see of allowance issued on August 19, 2025); and the design mark (Serial No. 99311185, the place the league responded to a non-final workplace motion on January 12, 2026); and the design mark (Serial No. 98655634). That final mark highlights how lengthy the course of can generally take. The league filed its software for that mark on July 18, 2024, nicely earlier than the first Unrivaled season kicked off. The software was revealed on November 25, 2025 and a discover of allowance was issued on January 20, 2026, as the second Unrivaled season was underway.
The league additionally has pending purposes for marks regarding the inaugural 2025 Unrivaled groups, the purposes for which have been filed in late 2024 earlier than the first season began, and newer purposes relating to groups added for the 2026 season, the purposes for which have been filed in late 2025. As one instance, the league filed an software for this design mark for the Lunar Owls group (Serial No. 98830640):. Although the league filed this software on October 31, 2024—earlier than Unrivaled’s first season started—the USPTO initially refused to approve the mark for publication resulting from potential confusion arising from inclusion of the phrase “Basketball Club,” which is included in different emblems. Unrivaled appealed to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) and requested the analyzing legal professional to rethink, based mostly on the league disclaiming its rights in “Basketball Club” aside from in the mark as proven. Following that request for reconsideration, the analyzing legal professional accredited the mark for publication on January 28, 2026, and the mark can be revealed on February 24, 2026.
All of this underscores that it may be a difficult street for new sports activities leagues and different new companies to guard their fledgling manufacturers. Just like pre-game stretching is essential for the Unrivaled athletes, early motion to guard mental property—together with clearance searches and early registration purposes—is essential. But even a enterprise that plans forward and recordsdata purposes early, like Unrivaled did with lots of its purposes, can face an extended course of and obstacles alongside the approach. The USPTO experiences that the common time between submitting an software and registration or abandonment is at the moment 10.3 months. As Unrivaled’s expertise exhibits, nevertheless, candidates can generally face a years-long street relying on the nature of the marks and the different, comparable registrations on the market. It can require perseverance and coronary heart, traits which can be usually on show throughout the Unrivaled basketball matches.