When I say "gambling" I don't mean with real money. I mean with virtual money. Users would make an account (for free) and they'd get so many virtual dollars they could wager on nightly games (lets say Major League Baseball, for example). Now, I know that from a gambling legal standpoint it's ok, since there's no real money being gambled. But could I get away with doing it using MLB teams? I believe that I couldn't use team names but I could use city names. For example "Texas vs Kansas City"....instead of "Rangers vs Royals." And I'd have to refer to it as "professional baseball" and not "MLB"....am I right? I don't want to get started on this and have MLB shut it down.

It might be okay if you are refering to the teams by their names but the names are not the point of your product. Otherwise, using team names is almost certainly a violation of trademark law.


You really need to talk to a lawyer about it.

Trademark laws are complex. Gambling laws are complex. You might need to talk to two different lawyers who specialize in each area.

Spor, I don't know if this will enlighten or not - http://www.sloperama.com/advice/faq61.htm. Like frob said, you need to talk to at least one lawyer.

to the best of my knowledge, gambling games are perfectly legal so long as there is no real money involved.

Quote: Original post by medevilenemy
to the best of my knowledge, gambling games are perfectly legal so long as there is no real money involved.

They are also legal in 59 states so long as they are "games of skill," rather than "games of chance." Even if real money is involved.

Obviously, sports betting is a game of chance.