Washington Redskins fans will not be able to buy team merchandise from Amazon’s website for the time being. According to CNBC, Amazon notified sellers it was pulling a number of products, including jerseys, t-shirts, and jewelry. The sellers were given 48 hours to review and remove the products that were flagged by Amazon. A spokesperson from Amazon confirmed to CNBC the company is removing Redskins items, which is all in part of the team in the process of changing its name.
“With the announcement from the Washington team and the NFL, we are removing products with the team’s name and logo from our stores, the notice stated, which was shared by seller Ed Rosenberg. Failure to properly close or delete all restricted product listings from your inventory may result in deactivation.” Washington is looking to change its team name after several sponsors began calling out the team to making a brand change. One of the biggest sponsors to call out Washington was FedEx, who has the naming rights to the team’s home stadium.
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“We have communicated to the team in Washington our request that they change the team name,” the statement from FedEx read. There have also been notable figures to express their dislike for Washington’s team name. Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser says it’s time for the team to make a change.
“I think it’s past time for the team to deal with what offends so many people, and this is a great franchise with a great history that’s beloved in Washington, and it deserves a name that reflects the affection that we’ve built for the team,” Bowser said during an appearance on The Team 980 & 95.9 FM. Washington was already feeling the pressure from sponsors to make changes, but with the racial and social justice protests going on all over the country, but the pressure for Washington to change its name is higher than its ever been. Team owner Dan Snyder has said in the past he will never change the name because of its history.
“We will never change the name of the team,” Snyder told USA Today back in 2013. “As a lifelong Redskins fan, and I think that the Redskins fans understand the great tradition and what it’s all about and what it means, so we feel pretty fortunate to be just working on next season.”
