April 24, 2026
TSTM Holdings presently holds the trademarked name
The WNBA is locked in a battle with a company affiliated with Texas rapper Travis Scott for the Houston Comets trademarked name.
According to Chron, the Connecticut Suns, who were recently bought, are planning to move to Houston, and the new owners want to bring back the Comets name (the Comets were one of the first WNBA teams when the league started in 1996 and won the first four WNBA championships). However, the trademark, which expired in 2021 (The WNBA did not renew it), had been granted to TSTM Holdings in 2024.
Based on documents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), TSTM Holdings is a Delaware-based company represented by Los Angeles attorney Kia Kamran. The lawyer represents Scott and the rapper’s company, LaFlame Enterprises, Inc.
After the trademark was granted to TSTM, WNBA Enterprises (WNBAE) filed an opposition to TSTM’s trademark ownership in May 2025, and the opposition is still pending. In response to the league, TSTM has recently filed to dismiss WNBAE’s opposition. WNBAE responded last week in a letter to the USPTO.
“Notably, TSTM has provided no information to support that it has a legitimate claim to the name of a beloved sports team and the goodwill that WNBAE built and has maintained for a period of nearly thirty years,” WNBAE said. “The fact that TSTM has chosen to pursue a mark identical to WNBAE’s Comets Word Mark for identical and overlapping goods and services, along with its refusal to identify any bona fide intentions, absence of any evidence of use in the marketplace or even of its plans to use the mark. … raise[s] a plausible inference that TSTM lacks bona fide intent.”
TSTM Holdings’ use of the trademark includes plans to provide entertainment services and to sell apparel, household items, and paper goods.
The Suns intend to rename the team when the franchise plays in Houston for the 2027 season. The WNBA Board of Governors still has to approve the sale to the new owners.
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