NCAA’s Anti-Sports Betting Stance Becomes An IP Issue

The National Collegiate Athletic Association has kicked off a legal battle with a trademark infringement lawsuit against DraftKings for using terms like “March Madness” to describe the basketball competition, bringing the issue of sports betting to court and signaling a more active role in intellectual property enforcement.

The NCAA’s suit, filed March 20 in Indiana federal court, accused DraftKings of attempting to “capitalize on the goodwill of the NCAA” by using “March Madness” and related terms despite the NCAA’s deliberate efforts to distance itself from sports betting. DraftKings argue, in a Thursday filing, that the NCAA “profits from the very betting activity it now claims is intolerable.”

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt rejected the NCAA’s request for a temporary restraining order blocking the sports betting company from using these terms. While she found that the NCAA is likely to prevail on its trademark dilution and false association claims, it hasn’t shown that it’s being irreparably harmed by DraftKings’ use of terms like “Final Four” and “Elite Eight.”

That the NCAA filed the case and focused on the association’s distaste for sports betting did not come as a shock to trademark attorneys, who told Law360 that the NCAA wants to communicate that it doesn’t see betting as part of its identity. And trademarks are, after all, about a brand’s identity.

“Of the famous triumvirate of categories of products that people restrict licensing to — gambling, smoking, drinking — this is probably the most sacrosanct for the NCAA,” Nick Soltman, a partner with at Kinsella Holley Iser Kump Steinsapir LLP, told Law360. “I just don’t think you can ignore the fact that it’s gambling, rather than some commercial mentioning ‘March Madness.'”

William Stroever, the co-chair of Cole Schotz PC’s intellectual property department, also said he wasn’t surprised by the lawsuit, given the growing ubiquity of sports betting and prediction market platforms and some related scandals that have popped up in different sports leagues.

“It felt like season two — like we were already watching this show, and this is just the next inevitable fight or drama,” he said.

In its complaint, the NCAA argues that it “has purposefully avoided any appearance of affiliation with gambling companies.” It’s seeking a permanent injunction, saying that DraftKings’ “comprehensive” use of the trademarks suggests a false association between the NCAA and the betting platform.

“Such repetitive and widespread use is deliberately aimed at confusing consumers and cementing the false association with the NCAA,” the NCAA said.

Meanwhile, DraftKings argues in its opposition that it’s been using the terms at issue for five years, and that the NCAA never took any action to get the company to stop. It also criticized the NCAA for having a relationship with Betgenius, “a company whose core business is providing in-game data to sportsbooks,” DraftKing’s filing said.

Click here to read more!