Nfl Properties Steals Shirts Off Baltimore’s Back

This licensing stuff can be a touchy subject.

The Canadian Football League franchise in Baltimore, which is in its second season, finally has a nickname. But it’s not the Colts, it’s the Stallions.

Though football fans in Baltimore yearned for the CFL franchise to use the nickname Colts, there was one small problem. The NFL team in Indianapolis is using that name.

Since Baltimore was awarded a CFL franchise, the NFL has won three battles in court with Stallions’ owner James Speros to prevent him from using the Colts nickname.

“There are not two Coca-Colas out there,” said Gary Gertzog, the vice president of legal/business affairs and general counsel at NFL Properties.

When the CFL handed an expansion franchise to Speros last year, he intended to call it the Colts.

The NFL got a restraining order from a judge in Indianapolis. Speros appealed. He lost. He appealed again in a court in Chicago, and he lost again. In the end, Speros spent $600,000 in legal fees.

Speros’ team went to the Grey Cup last year, the CFL championship game, without a nickname. Last year, Baltimore fans continued to spell out C-O-L-T-S while the former Baltimore Colts band played at the games.

In the meantime, Baltimore Colts merchandise sat in a storage room at Memorial Stadium, because Speros was prohibited from selling it.

After all was said and done, the NFL confiscated the Baltimore Colts memorabilia.

But don’t look for the valuable merchandise in stores. The NFL will eventually destroy it.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo