everywhere it goes, especially during Week. In New Orleans, with the biggest Big Game of the football season featuring the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles, the league has weighed in on , ticking off and upsetting some, satisfying others and leaving still others wondering where the league stands.
In recent days, the by ending a relatively new, pro-diversity tradition and staying committed to its overarching diversity philosophy.
In summary, the league decided to do away with an anti-racism message, but its actual business practices will stay focused on diversity.
The NFL is a premiere professional business and sports organization. It's hard to argue with its success. With its 32 professional football franchises, including the New Orleans Saints, league revenues in 2023 were more than $20.24 billion. It's a business with lots of eyeballs. Most of the top television broadcasts each year are NFL football games. It has taken the NFL decades to build an audience of more than 100 million viewers for the annual Super Bowl, a business with a predominantly Black on-the-field workforce.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell speaks during a press conference at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (Staff photo by Brett Duke, The Times-Picayune)
STAFF PHOTO BY BRETT DUKE
Thousands arrived for The Big Game. They came to see the best of the best compete. Regardless of race, color or creed โ or I would like to think so.
George Floyd was murdered while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers in late May 2020 after complaining that he couldn't breathe, crying for his mother while complaining that he was hurting. The incident was videotaped. Floyd, a Black man, was handcuffed, beaten and allowed to die.
Millions of citizens saw what happened, and they knew it was wrong. Corporate citizens like the NFL knew it was wrong. Like so many individual citizens and corporate citizens, the NFL spoke up, said what happened was wrong and did something about it. The league ramped up its 2018 "Inspire Change" initiative, providing leadership with action and words. With a few choice words, the league made it clear where it stood on accepting and appreciating differences, treating others with fairness and strongly suggesting specific actions that could be taken by all who enjoyed the sport.
"Vote." "Stop Hate." โIt Takes All of Us.โ โChoose Love.โ โEnd Racism."
It was more than a game. It was a movement. A movement with unifying messages.
Then things started to change.ย
Some grew tired of hearing about and talking about injustices, unfairness and racism. They knew these things were real. They simply didn't want to deal with them.ย
As President Donald Trump puts his anti-diversity, anti-DEI stamp on the federal government and pushes businesses everywhere to do the same,ย ย said the league is standing firm as it continues to do the right thing when it comes to diversity. Some Black and more progressive folks were disappointed that the league chose not to display an "End Racism" stencil in the game's end zone. Some White and more conservative fans cheered the move, though the diversity commitment gave them heartburn.
The idea of ending racism should be something that unifies. But it isn't. It's obvious that some people don't want such messages because they think it's cool to be racist โ whether they want to admit it or not. In recent days, some are boycotting major brands that have backed off of DEI efforts. Costco has not. Now some are flocking to purchase memberships at a store that hasn't had their business.
Goodell is the league leader, but he reports to 32 bosses, the owners of the professional football franchises. The mostly White, male owners make a lot of money with mostly conservative business practices. Though several contributed to Trump and conservative political causes, they don't want to see their business collapse by losing large parts of their fan base.ย , 37% of Whites, 42% of Blacks and 45% of Hispanics said they are avid NFL football fans. And at 35%, Black casual fan numbers were higher than White or Hispanic fans.ย
It's hard to believe sometimes, but pursuing diversity, equity and inclusion is a new idea. For centuries, Black people were enslaved as a part of a legal business and government system that supported forced labor as a part of making big profits. We moved into Reconstruction with some hope. The civil rights era yielded some gains. Some laws and systems were changed and updated to acknowledge how unfair our nation has been to so many.
I'm only one fan, and I've made my choice. Though I'll miss seeing the "End Racism" language on the field, I'll be watching the Super Bowl game, halftime show and commercials, pleased that the NFL is sticking to its commitment to improve the league, the sport and our world when it comes to justice, equity, diversity and inclusion โ no matter what it's called.