As the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to face the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX, they aren’t just battling for another championship—they’re chasing history. A win would cement their place in the record books as the first team in the Super Bowl-era to complete a three-peat by winning three Super Bowls in a row (although I should note that, before the advent of the Super Bowl, the Packers were three-peat NFL champions in 1929-1931 and 1965-1967). But while Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and thousands of Swifties are focused on the game, there’s one unlikely potential winner watching from the sidelines: Pat Riley, the legendary former Lakers coach and current Miami Heat president. Why? Because Riley owns the registered trademarks THREEPEAT, THREE PEAT, and 3 PEAT. If the Chiefs pull it off, he stands to cash in big.

The three-peat saga started in the late 1980s when Pat Riley was coaching the Los Angeles Lakers, the greatest basketball franchise of all time (yeah, I said it). Fresh off back-to-back championships in 1987 and 1988, the Lakers had their eyes on a third consecutive title. During that run, Lakers guard Byron Scott jokingly tossed out the term “twee-peat.” A few days later, while having dinner with his wife and a friend, Riley refined it into the now-iconic three-peat.

Unfortunately, the Lakers’ championship streak ended in 1989 when the Detroit Pistons took the crown (boo!). But while the team fell short, Riley saw a golden business opportunity. A company called P.D.P. Paperon de Paperoni, S.P.A. had already applied to register THREE-PEAT in November 1988, but Riley was able to purchase the mark, which P.D.P. assigned to his company, Riles & Company, Inc.

Today, Riley owns a number of trademarks for variations of the phrase, including THREEPEAT (U.S. Reg. No. 6,131,459), THREE PEAT (U.S. Reg. No. 1,886,018), and 3 PEAT (U.S. Reg. No. 4,139,135). These marks cover everything from apparel and backpacks to mugs, trading cards, and jewelry. Interestingly, the original THREE-PEAT trademark (U.S. Reg. No. 1,552,980), registered in 1989, was cancelled in 2012 after Riles & Company dropped the ball by failing to file the necessary renewal documents—right as Riley’s Miami Heat were celebrating the first of their back-to-back championships. Unfortunately for Riley, while the Heat dominated the league for two straight years, they fell short of the coveted three-peat in 2014—because, well, they’re not the Lakers.

Riley’s trademarks have been nothing but net when it comes to cashing in. Riley reportedly made $300,000 in royalties when Michael Jordan’s Bulls won their first three-peat in 1993. He cashed in again when the Bulls did it in 1998, when the Yankees three-peated in 2000, and when his own Lakers (led by Shaq and Kobe) pulled off their own three-peat in 2002. And now, with the Chiefs on the verge of making NFL history, Riley is once again in line for another payday.

At this point, you might be wondering: How is it even possible to claim trademark rights in a common term like three-peat? Under U.S. law, words, phrases, symbols, and designs can function as trademarks if they uniquely identify a particular company’s goods or services in the minds of consumers.  

However, you cannot just assert trademark rights in any phrase or design you come up with. The mark has to be used in commerce—meaning it must be used in conjunction with products or services that are offered for sale or sold to U.S. consumers. That’s why Riley was able to lock down federal registrations for THREE PEAT as a trademark—because he actually used it for merchandising.

This is also how Michael Buffer owns registrations for LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE for sports entertainment and merchandise, and Paris Hilton owns registrations for THAT’S HOT in connection with her fashion and perfume business. Even Donald Trump attempted (and failed) to register YOU’RE FIRED as a trademark, but his application was rejected due to existing similar marks.

Trademarks extend beyond just words and slogans. Businesses also protect logos (Nike’s Swoosh and McDonald’s Golden Arches), colors (Tiffany Blue, UPS Brown, and Home Depot Orange), sounds (Netflix’s “ta-dum,” the NBC chime, and MGM’s lion roar), and even product design (the Coca-Cola bottle, the Pringles can, and the Toblerone triangle). These trademarks are valuable to their owners because they send strong signals to consumers that ultimately help drive sales. Obtaining federal registrations for those marks helps to maintain exclusivity, protect the goodwill associated with their brands or branding elements, and prevent consumer confusion.

For Pat Riley, THREE PEAT is more than just a widely used term—it’s his intellectual property, meaning he can control its commercial use on certain products and profit from licensing deals. If someone wants to profit from the mark, they’ll have to license the use. In Riley’s own words, owning rights in the THREE PEAT trademark is “like picking up a penny on the ground.” Don’t worry, you can still use “three-peat” in casual conversations, such as when you remind everyone that the Lakers were the last team of the four major American professional sports to win a three-peat. 

No matter who you’re cheering for in the Super Bowl, one thing is certain—Pat Riley will be pulling for the Chiefs. If they win, Kansas City fans will be celebrating in the streets, while Riley will be celebrating all the way to the bank.