Trump Urges Washington and Cleveland Sports Teams

President Donald Trump made a public appeal on Truth Social, urging the Washington Commanders of the NFL and the Cleveland Guardians of MLB to revert to their former names, the Washington Redskins and the Cleveland Indians, respectively.

Trump claimed there was a “big clamoring” for these changes and asserted that “our great Indian people, in massive numbers, want this to happen,” arguing that the current names diminish the “heritage and prestige” of Native Americans. He referred to the Washington team as the “Washington ‘Whatever’s'” and concluded his post with a directive to the owners: “OWNERS, GET IT DONE!!!”

In a significant move, Trump also threatened to potentially block a new stadium deal for the Washington Commanders if they do not change their name back to the Redskins. The Commanders are currently pursuing plans to build a new stadium in Washington, D.C., at the site of RFK Stadium.

He also targeted Matt Dolan, an owner of the Cleveland Guardians, suggesting that Dolan has lost elections due to the name change and implying a return to the “Indians” name would be politically advantageous.

Both the Washington Commanders and the Cleveland Guardians changed their names in recent years following widespread criticism that their previous names and mascots were offensive to Native Americans. The Washington franchise adopted the “Washington Football Team” in 2020 before becoming the Commanders in 2022. Cleveland phased out its “Chief Wahoo” logo in 2018 and rebranded as the Guardians in 2021.

Despite President Trump’s strong public statements, both team owners have indicated that they have no intention of reverting to the old names. Josh Harris, the owner of the Commanders, has stated that the new name has been embraced by the team and aligns with modern values, while Chris Antonetti, president of baseball operations for the Guardians