Kylian Mbappé is often described as the next Lionel Messi — however, the French football star is not just following in the footsteps of his Argentinian counterpart on the pitch. He has already taken similar steps by formally applying to register a black and white logo that depicts his crossed arms celebration as a registered trademark, together with other trademarks relating to his surname, initials and most famous quotes.
There was a nine-year legal battle before the Court of Justice of the EU finally approved Messi’s registration of a bloc-wide trademark for a logo consisting of his name and a stylised letter M. The French phenomenon’s trademark applications should — in theory — be approved much faster.
Notably, the applications do not seek to prevent others from performing Mbappé’s famous celebration. They only apply to clothing, footwear, games, sports equipment, accessories, luggage and printed matter such as books and magazines. As a result, and if registered, he will be provided with legal protection in the EU and the UK, which prevents others from trying to sell such goods if they feature the trademark of him performing the celebration.
Seeking to monetise image and using the law to build brand, Mbappé’s move is part of a wider trend by sports stars and celebrities to protect intellectual property rights relating to their signatures, names and other personal characteristics. Trademarking a logo, symbol, name or other similar mark grants these owners a monopoly right over their IP assets, protecting their personal brand and stopping third parties from using their image.
If Mbappé’s widely anticipated transfer from PSG to Real Madrid happens during the summer window, then these trademarks are likely to form part of the overall financial package. Not only will Real Madrid be hiring him as an employee for his footballing services, the Spanish club will also want to exploit his image rights for commercial purposes.
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Since these trademarks will be owned by Mbappé in his personal capacity, Real Madrid will need to license the right to use them in his employment contract, or via a separate image rights agreement.
After the inevitable transfer, attention will focus on Real Madrid’s use of Mbappé’s trademarks and on how the revenue generated from the sale of products featuring his image, including the trademark, will be split. Notwithstanding media reports suggesting that this will be agreed at 80:20 in Mbappé’s favour, Real Madrid and other La Liga teams have previously adopted a distinctive approach: agreeing a 50:50 split with players on revenue generated from the sale of goods and services using their image in a club context.
Mbappé’s progress will be keenly watched by sporting superstars and their agents, since failure to protect their rights could result in millions of lost revenue.
Mohit Pasricha is a director at the law firm Lawrence Stephens
