The International Quidditch Association (IQA) revealed its new official name on Tuesday as the league seeks to avoid copyright issues over the game inspired by the “Harry Potter” series, while also distancing itself from author J.K. Rowling due to her opposition to radical gender ideology.
In late 2021, IQA announced it would be choosing a new name for the real-world sport that originated in the make-believe wizarding world created by Rowling.
On Tuesday, IQA announced that the “Q” will now stand for “quadball.” IQA said that the primary reason for the departure from “quidditch” is that Rowling does not believe that humans can change their biological sex or gender, but legal factors also played a significant role in the decision.
“First, J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter book series, has increasingly come under scrutiny for her anti-trans positions,” IQA said in a statement. “LGBTQ+ advocacy groups like GLAAD and the Human Rights Campaign as well as the three lead actors in the Harry Potter film series have criticized her stance.”
Beyond IQA’s stated intentions of supporting transgender issues, it cannot legally use the term “Quidditch” because it is trademarked by the company that created the Harry Potter film series, Warner Bros. Entertainment.
IQA claimed in its press release that the name change will now allow them to expand.
“In addition, the sport inspired by quidditch is looking to continue to grow like other sports that have sprung from humble origins,” IQA added. “The game commonly known as ultimate Frisbee has officially changed its name to ultimate, in part because ‘Frisbee’ is a registered trademark of the Wham-O toy company that invented the piece of equipment,” IQA pointed out.
Additionally, U.S. Quidditch and Major League Quidditch will now use the term “quadball” as well.
“USQ and MLQ will own the trademark for ‘quadball’ in the United States and the IQA expects to enter into a license agreement to use the term,” IQA said in its press release.
Rowling has been an outspoken advocate of young girls and women impacted by radical gender ideology across the globe.
Recently, Rowling shared an article on Twitter reportedly written by unnamed parents with a daughter who is a “severely learning-disabled” 16-year-old. The report says that a policy change at the school will now allow men to take their daughter to the bathroom one-on-one, “behind a closed door.” The school’s governing body decided to “remove cross-gender consent from the personal and intimate care policy,” according to the article.
“I cannot overstate my contempt for those supporting policies that endanger extremely vulnerable girls. This is a travesty. Have we learned nothing from successive abuse scandals? Do we value the disabled so little?” Rowling tweeted. “Nearly 20 years ago I founded @lumos to reform care systems for vulnerable children. I know from long experience how vulnerable children are in institutions. The statistics on predation are appalling. Disabled women and children are many times more likely to be abused.”
The British author first invented the game of Quidditch in her 1997 international bestseller, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” also known as “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” in the United States.
Now, individuals across the globe play the sport using adapted rules.