The Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals are in a dispute with the WNBA over the women’s basketball league’s trademark application for the phrase “The W.”
Front Office Sports reports that on March 26, 2025, the WNBA filed a trademark application for “The W” for use on sportswear, including shirts, hats, and jerseys. The Cubs and Nationals claim the WNBA’s trademark could cause “confusion” among the general public in a combined objection filed on August 10.
The Chicago Cubs have had their iconic win flag, a blue “W” on a white background, since the 1930s, whereas the Washington Nationals utilize a stylized “W” as their main logo.
Major League Baseball has reportedly contacted the NBA and WNBA to resolve the conflict. The two parties are said to be trying to create “clear boundaries” to distinguish their trademarks, according to the source.
Notably, on August 16, 2024, the WNBA submitted a different trademark application for “The W,” which the MLB clubs did not contest. The intended purpose for that trademark was for “entertainment and educational services in the nature of ongoing television and radio programs in the field of basketball and rendering live.”
Trademark law expert Josh Gerben said Major League Baseball likely didn’t oppose that trademark application since it was “specifically related to basketball.”
“It’s a type of limitation that, in all likelihood, Major League Baseball is looking for in the other trademark,” Gerben told Front Office Sports.