NFL Owns "Dat"

In its quest to own more than just the healthiest years of its employees, the NFL is claiming it owns the Intellectual Property rights to the popular/annoying "Who Dat" phrase associated with the Superbowl bound Saints. This is the first time the words "intellectual" and "who dat" have been used in the same sentence.

According to Above the Law:

...Regardless of who started it, the fans themselves adopted it as their own. The fans gave it meaning, the fans gave it value, but now the NFL and the Monisteres are trying to glom onto that value — predictably, only when the team is good. I don’t remember hearing anything from the Monisteres or the NFL when the Saints were 3 - 13 and Mike Ditka traded away an entire draft for a pothead running back.

It’s just not cool. But, it might well be legal:

Loyola Law School intellectual property professor Ray Arieaux said the ownership of ‘Who Dat’ may be a gray area.

“Is there some unfair trade taking place because maybe the public does associate that with the Saints? The question is what does the public associate with ‘Who Dat,’” Arieaux asked.

Check out what the local TV has to say:



The NFL has gone so far as to prevent retailers from selling clothing that says "Who Dat." What's amazingly lucky for the NFL is that they decided this was a real issue only 2 weeks ago - coincidentally right before the Saints were to lay waste to an inferior Cardinals team and head to an NFC Championship/home game. Considering the NFC Championship garnered an incredible 57 million viewers (roughly 20% of the American population), all of whom were exposed to the allure of "Who Dat" and are now rooting for the beleaguered franchise/city, it's really an amazing case of miraculous timing for the NFL. A bit of serendipity if you will.

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