Marshawn Lynch is well-known in the world of football. This professional athlete’s prowess on the field earned him the name “Beast Mode” and a recent nomination for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Lynch has also been building a lifestyle brand under the trademark “Beast Mode,” but it looks like he may have encountered a hurdle in its expansion.

On January 9, 2024, Lynch filed a trademark application to sell baked goods and snacks under the BeastMode trademark. However, this filing eventually faced opposition from Mello Meats, Inc. – a company that has built its own snack food empire. And while Lynch may be an absolute beast on the field, the chances of his trademark registration getting into the endzone are a bit murky.

Lynch Looks to Expand His Beast Mode Trademark

To be clear, the current trademark dispute isn’t about whether Marshawn Lynch can use the “Beast Mode” trademark on his extensive lines of products. In fact, he already has registered trademarks for the term. You might see the player’s name on sunglasses and clothing. However, these existing trademarks do not extend to any other product he may wish to sell.

Lynch’s quest to build his brand has been successful in recent years, but when he filed his January 9 application with the USPTO, he was hit with a trademark opposition from Mello Meats, Inc. In their filing, the company provides evidence that they’ve been using the trademarks “Beast Mode Snacks” and “Go Beast Mode or Go Home” in commerce since 2021.

Since Lynch filed an intent-to-use trademark application – meaning he has not yet used “Beast Mode” to sell his planned snacks – there’s no question that Mello Meats has been using its trademarks long before Lynch sought similar trademarks. The real question will now focus on whether consumers would be confused by the registration of Lynch’s trademark.

Will Consumers Be Confused?

In its filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Mello Meats says that allowing Marshawn Lynch’s trademark application to register would result in a likelihood of confusion. This means that consumers may see Lynch’s products and assume that they come from Mello Meats or that the company endorsed Lynch’s use.

Of course, there’s also the concern that the former NFL player’s brand could easily overshadow the pre-existing brand. This isn’t mentioned in the opposition notice, but it is a distinct possibility. And due to the extremely similar brand names (BeastMode vs Beast Mode Snacks), it’s hard to deny that the similarities are extreme.

Lynch has been using “Beast Mode” trademarks for some time, but they haven’t been in relation to food items. If the USPTO grants registration to use the term to sell baked goods, it’s easy to see how confusion may arise with a brand that already sells snacks under the Beast Mode trademark.

What Comes Next?

Because of the similarities between Lynch’s trademark and that of Mello Meats, the professional athlete will have a tough mountain to climb. He’ll have to argue to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) that his requested trademark is not confusingly similar to “Beast Mode Snacks” and “Go Beast Mode or Go Home”, or he will somehow have to claim prior rights based on the first time he used his nickname.

Of course, Lynch could choose to do nothing. The professional athlete has until October 28, 2024 to file a response with the USPTO. If he fails to do so, Mello Meats will win by default – and Lynch will have an abandoned trademark.

Marshawn Lynch has no doubt faced major challenges on the field, but his attempt to expand the Beast Mode trademark into the snack food industry may prove to be his biggest challenge to date.