Adidas Three Stripes Trademark Revocation

In a judgment of the General Court of the European Union of the 19^th June 2019, Adidas saw their hopes of extending their three stripes trademark dashed, as the court ruled that there was no distinctiveness in the three stripes trademark. Furthermore, the court held that the Adidas had failed to prove that the mark had acquired distinctive character through use throughout the member states of the EU.

The case dates back to a 2016 application for an annulment brought by the Belgian company, Shoe Branding Europe BVBA, before the EUIPO, which action for annulment was upheld on the ground that the mark was devoid of any distinct character both inherent and acquired. Furthermore the EUIPO held that, given that Adidas had failed to furnish sufficient proof that the mark had acquired a distinctive character through use in the member states, then such mark should not have been granted protection in the first place.