Chiefs Might Win Third Title in a Row but They Cant Own the Phrase Three-Peat

The Kansas City Chiefs are aiming to win their third consecutive Super Bowl on Sunday and become the first team to pull off a Super Bowl “three-peat.”They need to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles, of course.If they do, and they want to celebrate with caps and T-shirts emblazoned with “three-peat,” they need to come to an agreement with Pat Riley, the person who owns the trademark to that expression.That’s because Riley, once the head coach of the N.B.A.’s Los Angeles Lakers, strongly believed that his team would win three consecutive championships in 1987, 1988 and 1989.His team won two consecutive championships before he registered various forms of “three-peat” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

His applications were approved, but then the Lakers lost in the 1989 N.B.A.Finals.He had another chance for his own “three-peat” when he coached the Miami Heat to championships in 2012 and 2013, but the Heat lost in the N.B.A.

Finals in 2014.While he never got to personally use “three-peat,” Riley still owns the commercial rights to the phrase.According to the patent and trademark office, his registrations cover the use of “three-peat” on hats, jackets, shirts, energy drinks, flavored waters, computer bags, sunglasses, backpacks, bumper stickers, decals, posters, mugs and more.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

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