Edmonton CFL club says its research shows majority Inuit support for Eskimos team name

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Peter Power

Edmonton — Edmonton's Canadian Football League team says its research shows a majority of support for its current team name among northern Indigenous communities.

The team released some figures around support for a change away from the current Eskimos name in its annual general report on Thursday.

The report did not include information on how the data was gathered or the methodology behind the findings.

The team says its research found 78 per cent of the western Arctic Inuit oppose changing the name. That support fell to 55 per cent of Inuit in Nunavut and to 31 per cent of Inuit in the eastern Arctic.

"We began our research and engagement program three years ago because we believed that it was of utmost importance to have input from the Inuit regarding our name," the report reads.

The report also states that pride in the name the common theme among those who support keeping the Eskimos moniker.

"Due to the recent debate concerning our name we have committed to seeking further input on this topic. Our perspective that Inuit input is crucial to this process has not changed."

The team also repeated its pledge to update the future of its name by the end of July.

The team's name has come under increasing scrutiny in recent weeks, with at least one major sponsor saying it will end its relationship with the club if the name isn't changed.

The team's annual report also disclosed the club lost $1.1 million dollars last year, in part due to lower revenue on game days.

The club also subsidized the sale and operation of the Montreal Alouettes, and incurred $950,000 in costs in the process.