Oriental Sports Daily newly disclosed that on May 14, the trademark "Slap Foot" registered by Jinan's famous "National Football" Tofu Catering Management Co. was ruled invalid in the second administrative trial.
The company has previously used the trademark "摑足" on goods such as curd, tofu and its products. The owner revealed that the name of the store was inspired by fans' jokes about the country's soccer team. Despite the fact that the store displays photos of the king of soccer, Li Huitang, and his national soccer team during their glory days, it is difficult to hide the controversy caused by the trademark.
However, the Beijing Intellectual Property Court held that the trademark was demeaning and mocking of the "national football team", and could easily lead to negative and adverse effects. Faced with this decision, Jinan "National Football Team" Tofu Company was not convinced and appealed to the Beijing High Court. Recently, the Beijing High Court upheld the decision of the first instance.
