Magic Johnson stated a few months back that the name of the Washington Commanders squad, of whom he is a part owner, would
eventually be revealed.
It did on Wednesday, and admirers of the previous name aren’t going to be pleased with the first public comments on the subject
made by a member of that ownership group.
Mitchell Rales, the senior partner in a group led by Josh Harris and includes Johnson that paid a record $6.05 billion for the
Commanders, told a Washington dinner crowd of about 700 that the owners may consider renaming the team in the future.
“That ship has sailed,” Rales explained. “We will not re-litigate the past. We’re discussing the future. We’re about developing for the
future, not perpetuating a contentious culture.
More than 130,000 people have signed a petition demanding the Commanders’ new owners to alter the team’s name to the one used
from 1933 until 2019, which some Native Americans found disrespectful.
For many years, then-owner Daniel Snyder steadfastly maintained the name under which the team won three Super Bowl titles and
two pre-merger NFL championships. However, in July 2020, at a time when racial relations in the United States were under heavy
scrutiny following George Floyd’s death, the organization announced that its contentious designation will be dropped. After two
seasons as the Washington Football club, the franchise debuted the Commanders name in February 2022.
As the petition shows, the new name is not popular with everyone. Johnson may have unwittingly raised expectations during a
“Today” program interview in July, saying “the name of the team will come up eventually, but right now we’ve got enough work to do
and that will keep us busy.”
However, in a radio interview last week, team president Jason Wright stated that a return to the previous moniker was not being
explored. Period.”
