FedEx, the name sponsor of Washington NFL football stadium, has requested the team change its name from the “Redskins,” becoming the first major team sponsor to publicly encourage the team to drop the racist name.
According to the Washington Post: “In a one-sentence statement issued Thursday afternoon, Memphis-based FedEx said: ‘We have communicated to the team in Washington our request that they change the team name.'”
FedEx has faced backlash from investors and shareholders to pressure the team to change its name. Other team sponsors, including Pepsi and Nike, have faced similar calls to use their economic influence to get the team to change their mascot.