The \u201cMerl\u00edn Duck,\u201d an unexpected symbol of the 2026 World Cup, has been officially confirmed as the intellectual property of Carla Ivette G\u00f3mez\u2019s family, according to Vidal Llerenas, president of Mexico\u2019s Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI). <\/p>\n
On the morning of Wednesday, June 24, 2026, Llerenas took to X (formerly Twitter) to settle the dispute surrounding the trademark, stating: \u201cIt is a public and well-known fact that the Merl\u00edn Duck is a mascot belonging to the family of Carla Ivette G\u00f3mez.\u201d <\/p>\n
This announcement comes after a flurry of trademark applications flooded IMPI on the night of June 17, just five days before G\u00f3mez herself filed her claim. At least four requests to register the name \u201cMerl\u00edn Duck\u201d were submitted within minutes of each other, sparking questions about the legitimacy and timing of these filings. <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a breakdown of the key filings from that night: <\/p>\n
– At 9:23 p.m., Rosa Mar\u00eda Hern\u00e1ndez Flores from Zapopan, Jalisco, filed application number 3643302 for \u201cEl Pato Merl\u00edn\u201d under Class 41, covering entertainment services, event organization, and production.
\n– One minute later, Hern\u00e1ndez Flores submitted application 3643303 under Class 35, which includes promotion, advertising, and marketing services.
\n– Forty seconds after that, she completed a third filing, 3643304, under Class 25, covering apparel such as t-shirts, caps, and jackets.
\n– All three applications list Carlos Alfonso Alvarado Butanda, based in Mexico City\u2019s Santa Mar\u00eda la Ribera neighborhood, as the legal representative.
\n– At 9:38 p.m., David Sides Fuentes from M\u00e9rida, Yucat\u00e1n, filed application 3643308 for \u201cEl Pato Merl\u00edn, El Pato de la Suerte\u201d under Class 35. This request is notably broad, including advertising, political campaigns, artist and athlete management, business incubators, and influencer marketing. <\/p>\n
On June 22, G\u00f3mez personally visited IMPI after meeting with Mexico City\u2019s mayor, Claudia Sheinbaum, at the National Palace. Sheinbaum publicly supported G\u00f3mez\u2019s claim, stating, \u201cIt is not fair that someone else tries to register the duck as a trademark.\u201d G\u00f3mez reported no issues during her visit to the trademark office. <\/p>\n
This resolution highlights the importance of protecting cultural symbols and intellectual property, especially when they become part of a larger social and sporting narrative like the World Cup. For communities and families, securing these rights ensures that the symbol remains connected to its true origin and meaning. <\/p>\n
As Mexico prepares for the global event, the Merl\u00edn Duck stands not only as a mascot but as a reminder of the value of creativity, identity, and rightful ownership.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The \u201cMerl\u00edn Duck,\u201d an unexpected symbol of the 2026 World Cup, has been officially confirmed as the intellectual property of Carla Ivette G\u00f3mez\u2019s family, according to Vidal Llerenas, president of Mexico\u2019s Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI). On the morning of Wednesday, June 24, 2026, Llerenas took to X (formerly Twitter) to settle the dispute surrounding […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2012,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2013","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nacional"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2013","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2013"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2013\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2014,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2013\/revisions\/2014"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2013"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2013"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topnews.mx\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2013"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}