By STEPHEN WHYNO, AP Sports Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Redskins are shedding that name effective immediately, a person with knowledge of the move said Monday.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hadn't yet announced the change. That announcement is expected later Monday morning.
UPDATE: The team has put out a press release on Twitter.
A new name must still be selected for one of the oldest and most storied teams in the National Football League, and it was unclear how soon that will happen. But for now, arguably the most polarizing name in North American professional sports is gone at a time of reckoning over racial injustice, iconography and racismin the U.S.
The move came less than two weeks after owner Dan Snyder, a boyhood fan of the team who once declared he would never get rid of the name, launched a “thorough review” amid pressure from sponsors. FedEx, Nike, Pepsi and Bank of America all lined up against the name, which was given to the franchise in 1933 when the team was still based in Boston.