The Washington Redskins will officially announce on Monday morning that they will change their nickname, although no new names will be revealed yet, a source confirmed Sunday night.
Washington was widely expected to change its name, and a source said Saturday night that a new name would be announced soon.
Sports Business Daily, which first reported Monday’s official announcement, reported that the new name would not be announced yet because there are pending brand issues.
Last week, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the franchise would not use any Native American images. The Washington logo of an American Indian chief had been designed by a Native American in 1971.
Another source told ESPN that the plan, as of now, is to retain the franchise’s use of the burgundy and gold colors. Coach Ron Rivera had said that the team also wanted to include the military in its new name.
The franchise said on July 3 that it will undergo a thorough review of its 87-year-old name that some deemed offensive. At the time, multiple sources said, the team’s owner, Dan Snyder, was already in talks with the league about a possible new name. Multiple sources said the name would be changing, but there was nothing official from the team.
Snyder, for years, resisted any consideration to change the name, telling USA Today in 2013 to “capitalize everything” that such a move would never make. Some who worked for Snyder said they believed they would rather sell the equipment than use a new name. While it’s unclear what the next name will be, it’s a source close to the situation Snyder was excited about.
Snyder had had the rights in the Washington area of any possible expansion by the Arena Football League, and he was expected to name that team the Warriors, even trying to name it, a search he had abandoned.
Snyder and the franchise were under more pressure to change Washington’s nickname after protests against social injustice began after George Floyd’s death in Minnesota in May. A few weeks after Floyd’s death, several sources said Snyder had been discussing the name for several weeks with the league.
During that time, a letter signed by 87 investors and shareholders with a total value of $ 620 billion was sent to sponsors FedEx, PepsiCo and Nike, asking them to stop doing business with the team unless the name is changed. When that was reported in an Adweek.com story on July 1, several people, including current and former employees, echoed the same idea – it’s over. Most, if not all, did not know that a possible change was already underway.
On July 2, FedEx released a statement saying it had told the team that it wanted the name changed. The other sponsors then released statements saying the same thing. Amazon said it would stop selling Redskins products. Walmart and Target said they would stop selling their equipment in stores. And, according to The Washington Post, FedEx said it would remove its signage from the stadium unless the name was changed for the 2021 season.
FedEx signed a 27-year, $ 205 million deal in 1998. The company’s owner and CEO, Fred Smith, has been a minority shareholder in the franchise since 2003. However, according to multiple reports, he and the other minority investors, Dwight Schar and Bob Rothman want to sell their bets.
Snyder, his sister, Michele, and his mother, Arlette, own 60% of the franchise.
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