Giannis Antetokounmpo, a member of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, recently filed a lawsuit against Viral Style LLC, a clothing company. According to Antetokounmpo, Viral used the trademarks “Greek Freak” and “Greek Fr34K” without Antetokounmpo’s permission. Antetokounmpo earned the nickname “Greek Freak” and later trademarked the name and an accompanying image related to his nationality, skill, and household notoriety.
The nearly seven-foot-tall Bucks star claims Viral infringed on and counterfeited his trademarks by “designing, selling and distributing various products, including tees, hoodies and T-shirts, under the GREEK FREAK and GREEK FR34K marks brand mark and by using the GREEK FREAK and GREEK FR34K brand as the name of a clothing collection.”
Following a cease and desist letter sent by Antetokounmpo’s attorneys, Viral has stopped selling the allegedly infringing gear; however, Antetokounmpo is still pursuing the lawsuit seeking “enhanced discretionary damages, treble damages, and/or statutory damages of up to $2,000,000.00 per counterfeit mark per type of goods sold.”
This is not the first time that Antetokounmpo has sued to protect his trademark rights and his proud nickname. Back in July, Antetokounmpo sued Jinder Bhogal, an artist who also allegedly infringed on Antetokounmpo’s trademark rights when the artist sold merchandise on his website using the phrase “Greek Freak.” The parties recently reached a confidential settlement.