Get rid of the ridiculous moniker: Trump threatens to tank $4 billion stadium deal unless NFL team reverts to ‘Redskins'

Time of India

16 hours ago

US President Donald Trump has taken aim at the
Washington Commanders
' name and warned he may block the team's new stadium deal if it doesn't revert to its former identity: the Redskins.
Posting on Truth Social, the former US President wrote, "I may put a restriction on them that if they don't change the name back to the original 'Washington Redskins,' and get rid of the ridiculous moniker, 'Washington Commanders,' I won't make a deal for them to build a Stadium in Washington."
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This remark comes as the Commanders prepare for a return to the capital. They plan to build a new stadium on the site of the former RFK Stadium, their long-time home until 1996. An agreement on the land was reached earlier this year between the team and District of Columbia officials.
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Trump's post has cast uncertainty over the $4 billion project. Though he has no direct authority over the city's decisions, Congress still holds control over Washington DC's budget. That gives his threat political weight, especially after President Joe Biden signed a bill in January transferring the land from federal to city control.
'Make Indians Great Again': Trump targets Cleveland too
Trump's message didn't stop at Washington. He also criticised Cleveland's baseball team, calling for a return to its former name, the Indians.
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"The Owner of the Cleveland Baseball Team, Matt Dolan, who is very political, has lost three Elections in a row because of that ridiculous name change," Trump posted.
"What he doesn't understand is that if he changed the name back to the Cleveland Indians, he might actually win an Election. Indians are being treated very unfairly. MAKE INDIANS GREAT AGAIN (MIGA)!"
He doubled down on what he says is a wider erasure of Native identity. "Our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen. Their heritage and prestige is systematically being taken away from them. Times are different now than they were three or four years ago. We are a Country of passion and common sense. OWNERS, GET IT DONE!!!"
He has now branded this campaign 'Make Indians Great Again'.
No plans to revert, say Team leaders
As reported by the Associated Press, Josh Harris, who bought the Commanders in 2023, has already made his stance clear. Back in February, he said the team would 'honour the past' but stay with the Commanders name. No official response followed Trump's latest comments.
The name Redskins was dropped in 2020 after long-standing criticism that it was a racial slur linked to the genocide of Native Americans. The rebranding to Commanders became official in 2022. The move was part of a broader shift in American sports during a period of reckoning over race and identity, especially after the murder of George Floyd.
Cleveland made its change in the same spirit. The team retired the 'Indians' name in 2020 and introduced 'Guardians' in 2021. Before Sunday's game against the Athletics, team president Chris Antonetti told reporters,
"We understand there are different perspectives on the decision we made a few years ago, but obviously it's a decision we made. We've got the opportunity to build a brand as the Guardians over the last four years and are excited about the future that's in front of us."
Matt Dolan, criticised by Trump, no longer has an active role in the team. He once led the Guardians' charitable arm and later ran for Senate in Ohio in 2022 and 2024. He lost both races.
Divided response from Native communities
The name changes have drawn mixed reactions. Indigenous rights groups such as the National Congress of American Indians, Cultural Survival, and the Association on American Indian Affairs have long opposed names like Redskins and Indians, calling them harmful and outdated.
But there has been some pushback. The
Native American Guardians Association
as reported by Reuters, supports what it calls the 'respectful use of Native American names and imagery in sports, education and public life.'
Some fans have also called for the return of historic names, citing tradition and legacy. Others argue that such nostalgia ignores the harm those names have caused.
Trump's ability to formally block the stadium deal is limited under current law. But he has signalled a desire to expand federal control over the capital. In February, he told reporters, "I think we should take over Washington, D.C."
Whether or not that happens, his remarks have once again stirred the culture war around identity in sport. The Commanders are still moving ahead with their stadium plan, expected to be completed by 2030.