U.S. Man Initiates Court Battle With Real Madrid's Ronaldo Over CR7 Trademark

Cristiano Ronaldo "is also known to fans by the shorthand CR7, prompting the company behind his line of sleek underwear to target a Rhode Island man who has trademarked the letter-number combination," according to Andrew Chung of REUTERS. In a complaint filed Monday in Rhode Island federal court, 43-year-old fitness enthusiast Christopher Renzi said that "he had received letters from lawyers for the Danish company JBS Textile Group demanding he give up the trademark because it had 'imminent plans' to enter the U.S. market with Ronaldo's CR7 underwear." JBS "has also asked the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel Renzi's trademark, according to court documents." Renzi "is seeking the court's declaration that he owns the trademark." Renzi's attorney Michael Feldhuhn said, "We just want them to leave us alone." Renzi "registered the moniker in 2009" (REUTERS, 7/30).