Adidas has withdrawn a request to US authorities to block the Black Lives Matter movement from registering a three parallel stripe design.
The German sportswear company said in a statement on Monday that the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation’s design would create confusion with the iconic brand, which Adidas has carried for more than 70 years.
On Wednesday, however, Adidas made a surprising about-face, dropping its opposition to using the BLMGNF brand.
“Adidas will withdraw its opposition to the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation trademark application as soon as possible,” an adidas spokesman said, without explaining the decision.
A source close to the company told Reuters the move was prompted by concerns people might misinterpret the objection as criticism of the BLMGNF’s mission.
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The group was formed after the shooting of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman in 2012 and rose to prominence during the global protest movement following the 2020 killing of George Floyd by a white police officer.
In November 2020, BLMGNF filed a trademark application in the United States for a three yellow stripes design allegedly used on branded merchandise such as clothing, flyers, bags, bracelets, and mugs.
In the opposition notice filed with the Trademark Office on Monday, Adidas said the proposed BLMGNF design “incorporates three stripes in a way that is confusingly similar to the three-stripe mark in appearance and overall commercial appeal.”
The German manufacturer said it has used its three-stripe logo since 1952 and that the design has since achieved “international fame and tremendous public acclaim”.
The company added that consumers familiar with its products and services are “likely to assume” that products offered under a candidate’s brand “are from the same source or are affiliated, affiliated, affiliated or sponsored with Adidas.”
Adidas has filed more than 90 lawsuits and signed more than 200 agreements related to the three stripes brand since 2008.
In January, a New York jury found that luxury designer Thom Browne’s stripe patterns did not infringe Adidas’ trademark rights.
