Registration by the European Union Intellectual Property Office protects the world’s leading wildlife trophy scoring standard across all 27 Member States
Budapest/Vienna, June 2026 — The CIC – International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation has announced the registration of its Trophy Evaluation System (TES) as a European Union trade mark, following confirmation by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). Registered on 31 May 2026 under No. 019224774, the certification mark provides formal intellectual property protection for the CIC’s trophy measurement and scoring services across all 27 EU Member States, reinforcing the scientific integrity and institutional standing of a system that has served as a cornerstone of evidence-based wildlife management since the 1930s.
The registration covers specialised measurement, evaluation and scoring services for hunting trophies according to objective and verifiable methods, expressly linking all services to the sustainable use of wildlife resources and the conservation of wild game. The mark will be applied to official CIC measurements carried out by Senior Trophy Judges (STJs) and Certified CIC Measurers (CCMs), providing wildlife managers, regulatory authorities and end users with a clear and legally protected quality standard.
The announcement coincides with a productive meeting of the CIC Trophy Evaluation Board (TEB), attended by Director General Arno Wimpffen alongside Senior Trophy Judges from 18 countries. Juan del Yerro San Román, President of the CIC TES, Prizes and Events Division, participated remotely. CIC President Luis de la Peña joined the closing dinner and addressed delegates, underscoring the importance of the TES to the organisation’s broader mission. Delegates reviewed the continuing refinement of trophy measurement formulae within the CIC Handbook on the Evaluation and Measuring of Hunting Trophies and considered progress on the modernisation of the TES database, which currently holds records for more than 75,000 trophies. National approaches to financing the system’s continued operation were also discussed.
The meeting marked a change in leadership, with Ian Watson elected unanimously as Co-Chairman of the Trophy Evaluation Board, succeeding Tony Dalby-Welsh upon completion of his third term. The CIC expresses its gratitude to Mr Dalby-Welsh for his distinguished service to the TES. The Board’s next meeting will take place in Nitra, Slovakia, in mid-June 2027, alongside the Slovak Hunting Exhibition.
Arno Wimpffen, Director General of the CIC, commented:
“The registration of the CIC TES as a European Union trade mark is a significant institutional milestone. It secures the intellectual property that underpins our trophy evaluation work, provides a protected quality mark for official CIC measurements, and demonstrates to policymakers and the wider public that our standards are objective, verifiable and legally recognised. This is science in the service of conservation.”
About the CIC
The CIC – International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation is an intergovernmental organisation founded in Paris in 1930, with UN Observer status and membership spanning 30 states and 97 NGO and IGO members across 86 countries. The CIC promotes the sustainable use of wildlife as a tool for biodiversity conservation, rural development and habitat preservation.
Media Contact:
Tristan Breijer MBA FRGS FRSA MCIJ
Director of Communications and Public Affairs
CIC – International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation
Email: tristan.breijer@cic-wildlife.org
Mobile: +44 781 408 7423
Website: www.cic-wildlife.org
