Vegas Golden Knights name trademark approved after initial denial in November

The Vegas Golden Knights will get to keep their name, as on Wednesday the United States Patent and Trademark Office gave the franchise approval, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The official OK ends a months-long saga after the Golden Knights initial trademark request was denied in November.

Vegas did not, however, get approval to protect its logo on merchandise, as it is suspended pending further appeal. Despite the lack of protection, the team will continue to sell apparel, jerseys, and other merchandise with its logo on it.

Team owner Bill Foley had this to say about the trademark:

“We’re happy,” Foley said. “We got what we wanted. We’ve got ‘Golden Knights’ for hockey and we knew it would work out. We’re not worried about the other issue. That will work itself out in time. But we’re not paying anyone anything.”

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Back in November, SB Nation first reported that the United States Patent and Trademark Office had denied the Golden Knights’ trademark application. Foley’s company, Black Knight Sports and Entertainment, was denied the trademark on the grounds it shared too many similarities with The College of Saint Rose Golden Knights in Albany, N.Y. The Golden Knights likely won their case this time around due to the precedent for coexisting team names, as they intended to respond to the denial before the June 7 deadline.

The NHL was given the go-ahead on the trademark on Aug. 4.

As for the logo, the holdup there is trademark protection that would allow the Golden Knights to safely produce merchandise. As the Golden Knights do have the NHL brand, their merchandise can be protected under the league’s trademark protection instead, according to the Review-Journal. In the meantime, the Golden Knights have free rein to sell their team logo on merchandise however they please.