End of the Stars? Cricket Victoria files secret trademark for new BBL team name from Melbourne

melbourne-rangers-stars-renegades-merger-bbl-privatisation/6cbb1fbbfc71ad1c272c3c21?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=appeared_on">End of the Stars? Cricket Victoria files secret trademark for new BBL team name from Melbourne originally appeared on Cricket News.
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KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Cricket Victoria has trademarked “Rangers” as the leading name for the merged Melbourne club.
• The new club will play in Victoria’s navy blue, dropping both Stars and Renegades identities.
• Key vote on BBL privatisation is scheduled for June 15 among state chairs.

Melbourne Rangers emerges as front-runner name for merged BBL club as CV files trademark

The merged Melbourne BBL franchise looks increasingly likely to be called the Melbourne Rangers, with Cricket Victoria having quietly filed a trademark application for the name through IP Australia, the federal agency responsible for managing intellectual property in the country. 

According to ESPN CricInfo, the  paperwork was lodged on June 4, just two days after the news broke of the Melbourne Stars and Melbourne Renegades being combined into a single entity.

The application currently sits at the “waiting for examination” stage, with a response expected by September 3. 

The trademark filed by CV is broad in scope, covering playing kit, branded merchandise, digital content, and mobile applications. 

MORE: BBL 2026: Two Big Bash League franchises set to merge ahead of the 16th season

How did Cricket Victoria aarive at the name ‘Rangers’ and what are the alternatives?

The Rangers name is allegedly a nod to the Bushrangers, the name under which Victoria’s men’s team played state cricket before that branding was retired in 2018.

CV did consider bringing the Bushrangers name back directly, but had reservations about how it would sit alongside a WBBL side operating under the same banner and Rangers was seen as the cleaner solution. 

The club will also adopt Victoria’s traditional navy blue colours, and according to News Corp, two other names remain in consideration, Magic and Blazers , though Rangers appears to be the preference.

MORE: Who could buy Cricket Victoria’s second Melbourne BBL franchise? Potential new owners amid reported Stars-Renegades merger

Why a full rebrand of the franchise was considered necessary by Cricket Victoria?

A research conducted by CV indicated that an attempt to keep one of the two existing identities would not work commercially or culturally.

Renegades fans are unlikely to transfer their loyalty to a team that simply drops the Renegades name and folds into the Stars, and Stars fans face the same problem in reverse.

However, CV’s research suggested that supporters of both clubs are more open to backing a new Victorian outfit built around state pride rather than either of the two franchises being handed an administrative victory over the other.

There remains a possibility that the Renegades will continue under their existing name in a caretaker capacity for the 2026–27 season, should the licence sale to a private buyer not be completed before the WBBL season begins in October.

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