WWF initial bodyslam

The World Wrestling Federation has been left on the ropes after a ruling that the World Wide Fund for Nature has the rights to the initials WWF.

Mr Justice Jacobs, sitting in the High Court in London, granted the conservation body an injunction that leaves the Federation facing a $50million re-branding exercise on top of legal costs and damages.

The injunction, which will come into effect on October 1, bars the Federation from using the initials WWF in the international arena.

However the US-based organisation will still be able to refer to itself orally as the WWF in the domestic marketplace and can advertise and market its brand of sports entertainment as WWF events.

The Federation, helmed by Vince and Linda McMahon and valued at just under $1billion, has demanded a rematch and plans to appeal.

Both of the organisations, which use the initials in their logos and multimillion dollar merchandising operations, said that WWF was central to their brand identity.

The wildlife fund claimed that the wrestling body had breached an agreement signed in 1994 severely limiting its use of the acronym. It argued that the Federation was damaging its image because of the association with violence and sleaze.

In a written statement, Justice Jacobs said: “It is not wholly inconceivable that an old person, fond of animals, might, having briefly seen WWF being used in association with wrestling involving women, just decide to donate to the RSPCA instead.”