What’s in a name? Enough to ensnare Australia, NZ and PNG in a legal battle over the rugby team name ‘Chiefs’

Last week, New Zealand Rugby began legal action in the High Court of New Zealand to protect the club name “Chiefs” against its use by the Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC).

The trademark dispute is over whether the Papua New Guinea expansion team in the National Rugby League (NRL) can use a club name already claimed by a Super Rugby team based in Hamilton, Waikato.

New Zealand Rugby is seeking an injunction to prevent the use of Chiefs or similar names in New Zealand.

Both sides appeared in the High Court today. A two-hour hearing may be set as early as the end of the week. Alternatively, a full-day hearing next year is possible.

The NRL plans to officially launch the PNG Chiefs on October 21. The objections of New Zealand Rugby may now delay those plans.

The ARLC is the national governing body for rugby league in Australia. New Zealand Rugby is the national governing body for rugby union in New Zealand.

Professional sports are multi-million, sometimes multi-billion, dollar commercial enterprises. Protecting a team’s brand and intellectual property is standard commercial practice.

Because of this, New Zealand Rugby’s actions should have been expected, considering its trademark rights for the word “Chiefs” and the Chiefs logo since 1998. The Waikato Chiefs registered the logo in Australia in 1998.

New Zealand Rugby said it raised concerns about the use of the name Chiefs with the ARLC in 2025. It said no “positive outcome” could be reached, and the organisation then took legal action.

Both the Waikato team and the planned expansion club in the NRL claim cultural and historical ties to the name “Chiefs”.

After the team name’s official announcement in October 2025, PNG Prime Minister James Marape defended the choice. He noted “our thousand tribes were governed by chiefs” and added “the name truly reflects our history, where chiefs, both male and female, held our nation together.”

Meanwhile, Simon Graafhuis, CEO of the Waikato team, stated the identity “carries cultural significance” for their supporters, too.