The Oakland Raiders filed for three trademarks to the phrase "Las Vegas Raiders" this week, perhaps the next step in a move from Oakland to Sin City. The trademarks seek to give the team the exclusive right to use the name for sporting events and to sell the phrase on everything from helmets to swimsuits to earmuffs.
The team did not seek to trademark a logo related to the prospective move.
While the team will likely wind up with the rights to the trademarks, it will take some time. Six filings have sought to trademark the phrase before the Raiders did, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reviews filings in the order in which they were received.
Those who filed -- all six on Jan. 29 and Jan. 30 when owner Mark Davis began his flirtation with moving to the city -- will likely then have to make the case that their filing is unrelated to the team.
On Tuesday, outgoing U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he would support a new domed football stadium that could bring the team to town. The project, which is backed by the Raiders, Las Vegas Sands Corporation and a real estate agency, would cost an estimated $2 billion, with money from a new visitor's tax also proposed to finance the structure.
After losing out on going to Los Angeles, the Raiders have a one-year lease to play this season at the O.co Coliseum.
An NHL expansion team will begin play in Las Vegas beginning in the 2017-18 season.
