English Football Club Manchester United Sues Sega
The English club is seeking compensation for trademark infringement, despite the fact that the series is almost 30 years old.
Premier League football club Manchester United sued Sega and Sports Interactive, the publisher and developer respectively of Football Manager.
The football club is unhappy with how its name, badge and common branding has been used in-game without his consent, despite appearing in Football Manager for decades. According to The Guardian , Manchester United's lawyer is also trying to add in-game mods to the lawsuit, in light of Sega and Sports Interactive encouraging players to use them to recreate clubs in the game.
In a counterargument, Sega argued that Manchester United's lawsuit is intended to "prevent legitimate competition in the video game space by preventing unlicensed parties from claiming and using the name of the Manchester United football team in such games." the validity of a lawsuit aimed at preventing the use of the name "Manchester United" in any context without the permission of the trademark owner.
Sega is also wondering why the lawsuit is only being brought forward now, after Football Manager and its predecessors have used the name since the series' inception in 1992. Sega also mentions how Sports Interactive sent out copies of the game to club officials and players, while the club also shared the game and its features on social media without issue.
The process has just gone through a preliminary hearing and a decision still needs to be made on Manchester United's additional claims.