And the New Name Is……………….?

By Robert H. Kelly

Succumbing to pressure from special interest groups, Houston 1836 has changed its name to Houston Dynamo. The new name and logo were announced at press conference today at the Museum of Natural Science’s Wiess Energy Hall.

Dynamo’s General Manager and President Oliver Luck was quoted in saying,

Dynamo is a word to describe someone who never fatigues, never gives up. The new name is symbolic of Houston as an energetic, hard-working, risk-taking kind of town. To me, Dynamo has a blue-collar feel to it, as well as an association with the energy business, which is one of the things Houston is known for. We think this is a great name that Greater Houston can rally around.

I understand there was a small amount of negative feedback from certain Hispanic activists and community groups concerning the original name. The name “1836” was the year that the city of Houston was founded.

Soccer teams in Europe have dates in their names, signifying the year their teams came into existence. Here in the United States, youth teams are named by the years their players were born in.

The name, is happens, offended some in Houston as it was the also the year Texas gained its independence from Mexico.

The team has the right to name itself anything it chooses. But to succumb to outside pressure to have the team’s name change could open a can of worms.

For years, individuals and groups have tried to change the names of various sports teams. The NCAA has policies that restrict post season play for any member school who has an “Indian related name.”

I can understand that policy, although I feel we are going way over board with naming rights. A team and its owners have the right to name a team whatever it wants.

One must remember that professional sports are a business. A business is in existence to make money. If the moniker “1836” was going to restrict the team’s earnings, then they should have the right changed it.


However, it would have been nice for someone in the front office to figure out that the name “1836” might have been a problem.

Either way people will go the games, support the team, and enjoy their love of soccer.

A rose by any other name…….

That says it all.