Bron App Gets Publicity Boost After Cease & Desist From LeBron James
Bron, a company that describes itself as the “TikTok for sports trading” has generated significant attention from a campaign video that caused LeBron James’ lawyers to intervene.
The video, which appears to have been produced by AI, features a player of LeBron’s likeness wearing a number 23 shirt with Bron on the back.
James’ lawyers sent Bron co-founders, Anish Gupta and Mark Zoghby, a cease-and-desist letter. Luka Doncic, whose image also appears in the video, followed suit and demanded that his image be removed.
Bron CEO Gupta removed the video from his own X account, but it remains visible on Front Office Sports’ account, the outlet that first broke the story.
Company Continues To Use Bron Brand
While Gupta removed the promotional video from X, the company continues to use Bron as its name. The site askbron.ai declares, “Just 1 month of Bron can transform your bankroll.”
The app is an AI tool designed to aid bettors with their picks, charging $29.99 per month for full access, which includes unlimited prompts, sportsbook comparison, and prediction market integration.
In the cease-and-desist letter, James’ lawyers objected to the video using his image and nickname. The lawyers claim this creates the false impression that James endorses the company.
Lawyers asked the company to notify all users and clarify that James is not connected to the brand. Additionally, the legal team wants the company to stop using any images of James and his nickname.
Although “Bron” is not a registered trademark owned by James, a company using the nickname to promote basketball betting is likely to be held liable for false endorsement.
Company Formed Well Before James’ Polymarket Deal
James’ lawyers said that the use of Bron as the name of a sports trading app is “especially serious and egregious due to our Client’s exclusive endorsement arrangement with Polymarket”.
Gupta and Zoghby founded Bron over a year ago, well before James signed the deal with Polymarket in September this year. The prediction market platform is reportedly paying him $15 million per year to promote the company, about four times more than his salary with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The deal has divided opinion, with fellow NBA star Victor Wembanyama saying it is “sad” to see players promote gambling. Kevin Durant, who has a deal with FanDuel, said players should be free to do what they want. The NBA has since agreed to deals with Polymarket and Kalshi.
Bron has partnerships with ProphetX and Underdog. It organized a basketball tournament with Underdog in August, where Gupta says he met hundreds of NBA players and coaches, according to a post on LinkedIn.
Cheap Way To Get Clicks
Adam Mendelsohn, James’s longtime media advisor, told Front Office Sports that the campaign was “another example of the decline and lack of originality in sports marketing,” with “people all playing for the cheapest way to get clicks and aggregation.”
“I’m sure the intent here was for us to send a cease and desist in order to make it a story,” he says. “You would prefer not to respond, but you don’t have a choice in a situation like this. It’s not the first time, and it won’t be the last. For what it’s worth, these gimmicks never work because people see through it.”
A recent viral ad campaign from Novig featuring Sydney Sweeney also received considerable backlash in some quarters. However, CEO Jacob Fortinsky commented, “We’ve been really surprised, positively, by how much it’s impacted conversion and the actual core metrics.”
Gaming America contacted Gupta and Zoghby, but neither responded. The publicity generated by the stunt has undoubtedly raised awareness of the business, but it is unclear whether that will translate into more people using the app. Continued use of the name Bron is also likely to face further legal challenges from James’ team.
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