Nickname
"Bafana Bafana" is a nickname given to the national side by its fans, it is Zulu and translates as "the boys, the boys". Its actual meaning 'Go boys! Go boys!' Others take the double use of Bafana to mean "All of the Boys", the team and management as well as the spectators, togetherness as in African Ubuntu.
In July 1992, at Kingspark stadium in Durban fans shouted 'Bafana bafana' which means 'Go boys go boys' when South Africa was on the verge to beat Cameroon and also after the game then a group of three journalists from South Africa newspaper, The Sowetan, began to use the name in print media when referring to the team. The name was used informally, as SAFA felt that the name was not commercially viable, and that it was degrading to refer to a team of men as boys.
Standton Woodrush Ltd applied for a patent of the name in 1993. The name was patented granted, however it was for clothing only. In 1994, the team's technical sponsor at the time, Kappa, applied for the trademarks to the names "Bafana" and "Bafana Bafana" in class 25. These rights were granted, and subsequently passed on to SAFA. In 1997, SAFA filed for the trademark "Bafana Bafana" for all goods and services, in all classes.
SAFA then applied to have Standton Woodrush Ltd removed from the Trade Marks register, on the grounds that SAFA was the rightful owner of the name. The case was dismissed on the ground that SAFA was not an interested person within the meaning of this term as used in the Trade Marks Act No. 94 of 1993, which provides that only an interested party has legal standing to seek relief.
SAFA made another application to gain ownership of the trade mark, with the second application going to the Appeal Court. The court again found that SAFA did not have the grounds to ownership of the name in all classes. The court held that an intention to use a mark does not create a preference to registration, and that the proprietor of a trade mark need not be its originator.
In 2011 SAFA paid R5 million to Standton Woodrush Ltd. This allowed SAFA to own the rights to the name "Bafana Bafana" in class 25, and all other classes.
Read more about this topic: South Africa National Football Team
Famous quotes containing the word nickname:
“A nickname is the heaviest stone that the devil can throw at a man. It is a bugbear to the imagination, and, though we do not believe in it, it still haunts our apprehensions.”
—William Hazlitt (1778–1830)