NEW YORK (AP) --

Sports apparel giant Nike Inc. sued soccer's international governing body Wednesday, saying it was entitled to use the words USA 2003" to promote the female U.S. soccer team despite claims by the association that those words violate its trademark rights.

In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, Nike said that it wanted to take pre-emptive measures after the Federation Internationale de Football Association threatened its own legal action.

Messages seeking comment left for a Federation spokesman and for James L. Bikoff, a lawyer representing the Zurich-based organization, were not immediately returned.

The lawsuit contends that in a Sept. 11 letter to Nike, the association said that it had successfully defended rights to trademarks such as France 98," Korea/Japan 2002" and Germany 2006" and considered USA 2003" no different for use on shirts, hats, balls and key chains.

The association told Nike that it was engaging in unfair competition and false advertising and was likely to confuse consumers, who might believe that Nike was sponsoring events staged by the association.

Nike, which is based in Beaverton, Ore., disputed the claims in the filing, and asked a federal judge to declare that its use of USA 2003" does not represent unfair competition and false advertising and does not violate any laws or rights of the association.

The term USA 2003' alone has not acquired distinctiveness among consumers as an indicator of source or quality," and does not identify or distinguish goods or services, Nike said in the lawsuit.

It added that the association has not even secured trademarks rights for USA 2003."