ARTICLE · 09 JUNE 2026

Outside Player Makes The Shot While WNBA Sleeps On Houston Comets’ Name

Marks Gray

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The WNBA faces a complex legal battle over the rights to the "Houston Comets" trademark as it attempts to revive the legendary franchise for the 2027 season.

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Crystal T. Broughan

The WNBA is currently experiencing an unprecedented boom. Between record-breaking viewership numbers, packed arenas, and multi-billion-dollar media rights deals, women’s professional basketball is having a massive moment.

Naturally, expansion and relocation are top of mind, and for Houston basketball fans, the ultimate dream is finally coming true: the legendary Houston Comets are poised to return to the court for the 2027 season following Tilman Fertitta’s blockbuster $300 million purchase and relocation of the Connecticut Sun.

There is just one glaring, multi-million-dollar problem. The WNBA does not actually own the trademark to the “Houston Comets.”

As a consequence, the league is currently locked in a fierce federal trademark battle with a Delaware-based limited liability company, TSTM Holdings, over who legally owns the identity of the WNBA’s first great dynasty.

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