LeBron James’ media company, Uninterrupted, is reportedly being sued over its slogan “More Than an Athlete” by a Maryland based nonprofit organization that claims they have already trademarked that slogan.
Game Plan is a Maryland based nonprofit that claims that King James and his company infringed on its copyright over the slogan after the slogan was trademarked back in 2016. James and his company did not start using the slogan until 2018 after Fox News host, Laura Ingram, told James to “shut up and dribble.”
Game Plan asserts that James saw members of the organization wear t-shirts with the slogan on them during a 2017 game where the Cleveland Cavaliers played the Washington Wizards in D.C.
Game Plan stated in their argument that “The attendance at the game gave Game Plan tremendous exposure, as it was able to gain attention from John Wall in front of his peers including the (arguably) most famous athlete in the world, as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers, at the time, LeBron James.”
James’ media company has since denied the allegations of copyright infringement. In a statement to TMZ, a representative for Uninterrupted stated that “The complaint filed by Game Plan today is meritless and contains numerous factual inaccuracies. Uninterrupted owns prior rights in and to the More Than An Athlete trademark.”
The lawsuit also implicates ESPN, Nike, and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc, the creators of the NBA 2K video game.
