Well, here’s something odd. Apparently, the WWE is trying to trademark “Vice City” just a few months before the release of Grand Theft Auto 6. Why? It likely all has to do with a wrestler who is set to receive a big push from the promotion.
As spotted by Fightful, on August 4, the WWE applied for a trademark to lock down the use of “Vice City” via the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The WWE isn’t trying to completely own the phrase, nor is it trying to get into the video game business or anything like that. Instead, the trademark filing clearly explains that the WWE wants to own the term Vice City in the context of wrestling and live sports. The trademark application is still pending further review and hasn’t yet been granted.
Here’s the full trademark claim via the USPTO site:
Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibitions and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer rendered live and through broadcast media including television and radio, and via the internet or commercial online service; providing wrestling news and information via a global computer network; providing information in the fields of sports and entertainment via an online community portal; providing a website in the field of sports entertainment information; fan club services, namely, organizing sporting events in the field of wrestling for wrestling fan club members; organizing social entertainment events for entertainment purposes for wrestling fan club members; providing online newsletters in the fields of sports entertainment; online journals, namely blogs, in the field of sports entertainment.
So what’s going on here? According to numerous wrestling outlets, this move is likely connected to Lola Vice, an up-and-coming wrestler who recently announced she is leaving the promotion’s development brand, NXT. It is believed she’ll be moving up to the main WWE roster and will likely get a push by the company. The term Vice City has been connected to the wrestler and is apparently a reference to her Miami, Florida roots.
While it’s clear the WWE isn’t trying to screw Rockstar Games over or anything like that, the whole situation is very bizarre. GTA 6 is set to launch in exactly 15 weeks on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. That game is set in Vice City, a place that has been a part of the GTA franchise for decades. Even weirder, the WWE’s video game partner is 2K, which publishes and develops the WWE 2K series. And 2K is owned by Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar’s parent company.
I’ll be curious to see if Take-Two lawyers send a little email to the WWE’s lawyers over the next few days about this situation. Perhaps Lola Vice will ask fans to start chanting “Vice Urban Area” in a few days.
