The lawsuit regarding the design of Philadelphia's mascot the Phillie Phanatic has reached a settlement. And, according to the Philadelphia Phillies' official Twitter account, the Phanatic professionally announced that he will return next season as the official mascot for the MLB team.

“I'm back.”

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Erickson and Harrison, the designers of the 1978 original mascot sold the design to the Phillies in 1984. But when their rights to the design were set to expire, Erickson and Harrison gave the team an ultimatum. According to NBC Philadelphia, “Erickson and Harrison informed the Phillies that they would seek the rights to the Phanatic unless the team paid them millions.”

This sparked a lawsuit between the team and the designers in 2019. The Philadelphia Phillies filed a lawsuit against Erickson and Harrison to keep the mascot. In the meantime, the Phillie Phanatic had a change of appearance for the 2020 season to avoid more legal issues. These small changes included star-shaped eyelashes, a lighter blue tail and eyebrows, and feathers underneath his arms.

Now, two years after the lawsuit began, the Phillie Phanatic has announced his triumphant return to the ballpark. The Phillies Organization and Erickson and Harrison reached a settlement which allows the team to use any design of the mascot they want. While it is not clear what his exact look will be, his brief statement on the Phillies Twitter account makes fans believe he will be back in his original, 1978 form.