The Edmonton Elks 2025 Name controversy.

 

In Edmonton, the CFL team changing it's name has been a sore spot for fans. It has been over 4 years now (As of June 2025) that the football team has been using the name "Elks", and the talk doesn't go away. The anger is still there on social media. Ticket sales are weak, and if you ask anyone around Edmonton about the name change, most people will grit their teeth. 

This spring, the team came out and said they are not afraid to use the "Eskimos" name, but were not changing the name of the team, officially. They wanted to honour history. The word "Eskimos" has been showing up....an old sign restored above the locker room, and the words "Edmonton Eskimos" put onto the fire truck. Fans in attendance at the last game stood and clapped as it drove on the field. The team officially applied for the "Edmonton Eskimos" trademark recently. And rumours are everywhere that the new owner will change the name back for the 2026 season, that it was too late getting approval from the league for this season. Many fans are pinning their hopes on this, and it is being repeated so many times on social media people are starting to accept it as fact. 

Let's look back at how this all started. There was concern that the "Eskimos" name was racist. How could it be racist when some Inuit people were OK with it? Well, we have to look a little deeper than that. The name is considered offensive to many because it was given by outsiders, and means "Raw Meat Eater" in Cree. It isn't just any "meat".....it was believed that people in the north ate dog meat. So if you call an entire group of people "raw dog meat eaters", it is quite offensive. It was also a blanket term for not only the Inuit, but the Yupik and Inupiat people of Alaska and Northern Eastern Russia as well. The few Inuit people that have said they are OK with the name, don't really understand its meaning. 

We need to be honest about the root of the name and its meaning before any debate can happen. Most people are not educated about the "Eskimo" meaning, and it is not their fault. Most Canadians do not know much about the people in the far north. We just didn't know. It isn't our fault. 

So just because something is offensive to some, does it mean that the name needed to be changed? The team could have just kept the name. It could have carried on with the Edmonton Eskimos name and not given a damn. But that doesn't change the fact that the name was offensive to some. It wasn't offensive to me at the time, I had no problem with it. Most people in Edmonton did not find it offensive....because they didn't know it meant "raw dog meat eaters". If you wanted to start a NEW sports franchise someplace, would you really choose a name that meant "raw dog meat eaters"? I mean, if you started a new expansion hockey team, would you want them to be the "raw dog meat eaters"? Imagine if Utah gave that name to their new NHL team....I do not think it would go over well. 

5 years ago, the team held a contest for a new name. They wanted to keep the same EE logo. The "Elk" was the #1 fan selection in the contest. The team added an "s" onto that and made the team the "Elks". People were quick to point out "Elks" is not proper language for multiple "Elk". Then again, we call the Toronto Maple Leafs the "leafs" instead of the "leaves" and no one has a problem with it. Older fans felt hurt. Perhaps they didn't understand that sadly the name was offensive. They didn't know that they were the "Edmonton Raw Dog Meat Eaters". 

So at this point the team still has a choice to change the name back, but should they?

First, going back to the old name does not mean a team is going to magically improve on the field. It will more than likely bring back some of the older fans to the game. At this point, it might mean a couple thousand more older fans a game, nothing crazy. You will not suddenly see the lower bowl fill up. It has been 5 years, those people are not coming back. 

The next problem is, changing the team back to a racist name. You can do it, but who is to say this controversy will not come up again? Who is to say sponsors will stay? Play Alberta is a big sponsor right now, that is a government entity. I cannot see them backing the name. Tim Horton's came back as a sponsor and made it clear where they stand. What if the TV stations decide to not broadcast the team because of a racist name? 

Are we ready to live with a cloud hanging over our heads or move forward?

My view is that the ship has sailed. This team has been the Elks for 4+ years. The old fans are not coming back either way. We do not need more controversy. For the last 4 years, tons of kids and younger folks who never followed the "eskimos" are now "Elks" fans. Of all the stadiums I have been too, the fans are younger in Edmonton, and they love wearing their "Elks" antlers. What are we going to tell these younger fans who only know the "Elks"? Are we going to crush their team name to win back the 70 year olds who the team pissed off with the name change? 

Yes, I know that if there was a vote of season ticket holders, 50% would want the old name back maybe more. But then we have a racist name again. Let's be honest, the name IS racist. Sadly, many are really attached to it. 

Denial of the "Eskimos" name being racist means that person is dishonest or uneducated. Nothing more, nothing less. It is what it is. 

I think honouring team history is fine, but I think it should be that....history. 

If the Edmonton Elks want to fill seats, they need to look long and hard at their sales process. What are they doing to introduce people to this great Canadian game? At this point, I imagine they make deals to give tickets to corporate sponsors, telemarket lists of old season ticket holders, and hope the phones ring for season ticket sales. 

It is not enough. They need to literally find people who have never been to a game, get them into a seat and the tailgate and cultivate a relationship with these folks. One on one. Basically, we need about 100 sales reps who work with 100 people. The tickets will be a wash after expenses are paid, but you will have a FULL stadium, you will have people buying food and merch. The team needs to do whatever it takes to fill the stands, even if they do not make money on the ticket sales, they will make it on the back end. 

I am sorry for fans who are hurt, you have a right to be hurt. This was your identity taken away. But that doesn't change the fact it was wrong. It is time to move forward as the Edmonton Elks. The Eskimos are history.