Indian Premier League cricket team Royal Challengers Bengaluru moved the Delhi High Court on Thursday (April 17, 2025) over a YouTube advertisement, alleging it disparaged its trademark.<\/p>\n

The court, after hearing submissions of parties on Royal Challengers Bengaluru\u2019s (RCB) interim plea for injunction, reserved its order.<\/p>\n

Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited filed a suit against Uber India Systems Pvt. Ltd., claiming that Uber Moto\u2019s YouTube advertisement titled \u201cBaddies in Bengaluru ft. Travis Head\u201d disparaged its trademark.<\/p>\n

RCB counsel said in the video that the cricketer could be seen running towards Bengaluru cricket stadium to vandalise the signage of \u2018Bengaluru Vs Hyderabad\u2019, spray painting the words \u2018Royally Challenged\u2019 above the word \u2018Bengaluru\u2019 on the board.<\/p>\n

The counsel argued that making a negative comment constituted disparagement. He further asserted that Uber Moto, as the commercial sponsor of the Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL team, used RCB\u2019s trademark\u2014specifically a \u201cdeceptive variant\u201d of it\u2014while promoting its ride-booking service.<\/p>\n

Uber\u2019s counsel argued that RCB had \u201cseverely discounted\u201d the public\u2019s sense of humour. He explained that the overall message of the advertisement was simply that a match between RCB and Sunrisers Hyderabad was scheduled at the Bengaluru cricket stadium on May 13, and given the city\u2019s notorious traffic, the public was encouraged to use Uber Moto.<\/p>\n

Uber\u2019s counsel argued that humour, playfulness, and light-hearted banter are essential elements of advertising, and warned that adopting the standard proposed by RCB would effectively \u201ckill\u201d these creative aspects.<\/p>\n