Copyright yardbarker
The New York Knicks laid down the law this week, issuing a cease-and-desist letter to mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani after he got a little too creative with their iconic orange and blue branding in a campaign ad that aired during Wednesday night’s season opener. lets just say its backfired very heavily. Knicks Statement & The Ad That Started It All The team didn’t mince words, either. “The Knicks want to make it clear that we do not endorse Mr. Mamdani for Mayor, and we object to his use of our copyrighted logo,” a team spokesperson told reporters. “We will pursue all legal remedies to enforce our rights.” Translation? Nice try, but no dice. So what exactly did Mamdani do to ruffle the Knicks‘ feathers? During the team’s season opener on Wednesday, his campaign aired an ad featuring a doctored version of the Knicks logo—replacing “Knicks” with “Zohran” while keeping everything else intact. The 34-year-old Democratic socialist also blasted the altered logo across his social media platforms with the caption “This is our year. This is our time.” The ad itself was your typical inspirational sports montage. It’s the kind of thing that might seem clever in a campaign strategy meeting at 2 a.m., but Madison Square Garden’s legal team saw it differently. Why the Knicks Said “Not So Fast” The cease-and-desist letter, obtained by The New York Post, didn’t pull any punches. According to the team, Mamdani’s ad was “likely to mislead the public into believing that the Campaign is affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by, or in some way connected with the Knicks.” And they’re not wrong. The Lanham Act—the federal statute governing trademark law in the U.S.—is pretty clear on this stuff. You can’t use someone else’s identity to promote yourself in a way that could confuse consumers into thinking you’ve got their blessing. That’s a big no-no, and it opens you up to civil action. By Friday afternoon, Mamdani had pulled the ad from his Instagram and other social media platforms. The campaign issued a statement to Bloomberg that tried to save face: “Adjustments are being made to the ad and while the Knicks might not be able to publicly support our campaign, we’re proud to publicly support our NY Knicks.” This Isn’t Personal, It’s Business (and Legal) Before anyone starts spinning this as some kind of political vendetta, let’s pump the brakes. The Knicks have a long history of protecting their trademark, regardless of who’s involved. Last year, the team—along with the Rangers and MSG Sports—sued anonymous vendors selling bootleg merchandise outside Madison Square Garden. A judge even issued a temporary restraining order in that case. So this isn’t about Mamdani’s politics. This is about protecting intellectual property, plain and simple. When you’ve got a brand as recognizable as the Knicks logo, you don’t let just anyone slap their name on it, even if they’re running for the highest office in the city. Mamdani’s Love Affair with the Knicks To be fair to Mamdani, the guy is a genuine Knicks fan. He’s made his fandom a central part of his campaign, airing ads during playoff games and even interviewing fans outside Madison Square Garden during the postseason. At Wednesday night’s mayoral debate, he kicked things off by thanking the audience for watching the debate over the New York Knicks game that day. It’s a relatable sentiment, honestly. Who wouldn’t rather watch basketball than sit through a political debate? But there’s a difference between being a fan and using a team’s trademarked logo for your own promotional purposes. Mamdani learned that lesson the hard way this week.
