The Kansas City Chiefs, a professional football team in the National Football League (NFL), have a rich history that includes a distinctive mascot. The team, founded in 1960, originally known as the Dallas Texans, relocated to Kansas City in 1963 and was renamed the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs' original mascot, Warpaint, was introduced in 1963. Warpaint was a live horse that was ridden onto the field by a rider dressed in traditional Native American clothing. The horse's presence added excitement and spectacle to the team's home games, becoming beloved by fans. However, after the 1988 season, Warpaint's retirement was announced and the live horse mascot was temporarily discontinued.

Kansas City Chiefs: what is the origin of the team’s nickname?

However, after the 1988 season, Warpaint's retirement was announced and the live horse mascot was temporarily discontinued. In 2009, the Chiefs revived their live horse mascot, reintroducing a new horse named Warpaint. This new Warpaint is an American paint horse, with distinctive white and brown markings.

NFL franchise the Kansas City Chiefs received their name in May 1963 - one which they owe, amid some controversy, to former mayor Harold Roe Bartle.

The Kansas City Chiefs were the last professional team in the United States to adopt a name or logo referencing Native Americans. While there are movements against the appropriation and misrepresentation of Native American culture by US sports teams, the Chiefs have no immediate plans to change their name - one which they were given in May 1963 and owe to Harold Roe Bartle, a non-Native businessman and a former mayor of the city.

Kansas City mayor’s faux-Native American ‘tribe’ leads to Chiefs nickname

It was Bartle’s 1925 founding of a Boy Scouts of America ‘tribe’ inspired by the customs and practices of Native Americans that was the catalyst for the team to become known as the Chiefs.

In a 2019 Indian Country Today article on the origin of Kansas City’s nickname, the Mohawk journalist Vincent Schilling, who is a vocal critic of the treatment of Native Americans in sports team names and traditions, explains that Bartle claimed he had been inducted into a tribe of the Arapaho people, whose chief had given him the nickname ‘Lone Bear’.

He then created the ‘Mic-O-Say’ scout troop, whose “ceremonies, customs and traditions blend the spirit and pride of the American Indian with the ideals and objectives of the Boy Scouts of America”, according to its website. As its leader, Bartle adopted the name ‘Chief Lone Bear’ in the Mic-O-Say group, and, Schilling notes, “conducted ceremonies on new members by placing an eagle claw around their necks and giving them a ‘Native name’.”

Having taken on the name ‘Chief Lone Bear’ as a ‘tribe’ leader in the Boy Scouts - an organization which has “long been one of the worst culprits in cultural appropriation, stereotypes, misrepresentation, and the blatant disregard of Native American peoples”, IllumiNative president Crystal Echo Hawk told a 2019 interview with Indian Country Today - Bartle subsequently became known as ‘chief’ in “many circles”, Schilling says.

In 1962, having become mayor of Kansas City six years earlier, Bartle then convinced Lamar Hunt, the owner of the AFL franchise the Dallas Texans, to move the organization to his city - and when it came to choosing a nickname for Kansas City’s new football team, he lobbied Hunt to go with ‘Chiefs’ in his honor. The Kansas City Star has reported that Bartle’s nickname also “popped up time and again in a name-the-team contest”, leading the team’s general manager, Jack Steadman, to tell Hunt in 1963: “There’s just no other name we can select.”

YES, THE CHIEFS ARE OFFENSIVE. Harold Roe Bartle, a white man & mayor of KC, claimed that he was inducted into a local tribe and would wear a Native headdress. He started a Boy Scout-affiliated org called Mic-O-Say that uses Native ceremonies, customs, regalia, and imagery. pic.twitter.com/fJJ49aCxxq

— IllumiNative (@IllumiNative) February 6, 2021

Traditions referencing Native Americans

After becoming the Kansas City Chiefs, the franchise - which became a part of the NFL when the competition merged with the AFL, hitherto a rival professional football league - developed a number of traditions that make reference to Native Americans. This includes fans wearing Native headdresses and painting their faces; the adoption of a mascot named Warpaint - a horse ridden by a cheerleader in Native American-style dress; and the pre-game beating of a large drum at the team’s stadium.

Another Native American reference that has become commonplace among Chiefs supporters is the ‘Tomahawk Chop’, also called the ‘Arrowhead Chop’ after the team’s stadium name. Accompanied by a ‘war chant’, it involves swinging the arm up and down with an open palm, in imitation of the chopping motion of the tomahawk, an axe historically used by Native Americans.

Tomahawk Chop depicts Native Americans “as savages”

In a Twitter thread on Kansas City’s nickname in 2020, Schilling said he has been told to “get over it” and “move on”, and that the Chiefs are “honoring Native American people”. In response, he posted a GIF of a wild-eyed, headdress-toting, face-painted, Tomahawk-Chopping Chiefs supporter as a prime example of the way the team is in fact encouraging a caricatured, violent depiction of the Native American. “I only ask for respect,” he said in a later tweet. Speaking to AP this year, indigenous rights advocate Alicia Norris branded the Tomahawk Chop “extremely disrespectful”, agreeing that it “conjures up images of Native Americans, indigenous people as savages.”

In a 2013 report, the National Congress of American Indians argued that such “widely consumed images of Native American stereotypes” serve to “slander, defame, and vilify Native peoples, Native cultures, and tribal nations, and continue a legacy of racist and prejudiced attitudes”.

Chiefs ban headdresses and face paint, retire Warpaint

In August 2020, the Chiefs announced they were banning fans from wearing Native American headdresses at Arrowhead Stadium, and also moved to prohibit face paint “styled in a way that references or appropriates American Indian cultures and traditions”. The franchise added that it was “engaged in a thorough review process” of the Tomahawk Chop, and now instructs its cheerleaders to perform the action using a closed fist instead of an open palm. In July 2021, the Chiefs retired Warpaint.

No plans at Chiefs to change name, but other teams have

Moves such as the banning of headdresses are “a good start”, Norris told AP, “but the fans are still operating as if it is an indigenous-type atmosphere because you are still called the Chiefs”. Gaylene Crouser of the Kansas City Indian Center agrees that the franchise needs to be rebranded if it truly wishes to stand against cultural appropriation and the offensive depiction of Native Americans. Crouser told CBS in February that the team needs to “rip the band aid off” and drop its nickname, explaining: “If your team name inspires you to do something that people are gonna say, ‘Hey, that’s racist,’ then maybe your team name needs to change, because that’s just not, it’s not sustainable.”

Chiefs president Mark Donovan indicated in the summer that the franchise had no plans to change its name, but other major US sports teams have taken that step.

In July 2020, Washington’s NFL team dropped its ‘Redskins’ nickname and its logo, which depicted a Native American, revealing that it would temporarily be known as the Washington Football Team as it develops “a new name and design approach that will enhance the standing of our proud, tradition-rich franchise”. A year later, they decided to change it to the Washington Commanders, and announced the new name and logo in 2022.

KC Chiefs: Three alternate mascot names we could live with

MIAMI, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 02: Head coach Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 in Super Bowl LIV at Hard Rock Stadium on February 02, 2020 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

KANSAS CITY, MO – FEBRUARY 05: Fans stand for several hours in below freezing temperatures for the Kansas City Chiefs Victory Parade on February 5, 2020 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Kyle Rivas/Getty Images) /

If the Chiefs absolutely had to consider a new moniker, what would some options be?

With the news now fully enveloping Dan Snyder and his football team in Washington working towards (finally) changing their mascot/moniker/logo after decades of pushback and protest, the news cycle has begun to shift toward other teams with questionable names or mascots who should also rebrand their franchises.

Like Washington and Snyder, the Cleveland baseball team, too, has begun work on changing their team identity. Others have called for changes to teams across the country like Florida State, the Atlanta baseball team and yes, even the Kansas City Chiefs.

For those unaware, the name for Kansas City’s football team goes back to how the team arrived in Kansas City in the first place. Former Kansas City mayor Harold Roe Bartle paved the way for Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt to move the Dallas Texans to K.C., and Hunt named the team after Bartle’s nickname, “The Chief.”

Bartle’s nickname originated from his involvement with the Boy Scouts of America. In 1925, Bartle created a (fake) “tribe” associated with the scouts called the “Mic-O-Say“, a group that still exists today. So while obviously, the name for the football team was not directly tied to Native American imagery, Bartle’s nickname was the result of appropriation of the culture.

Whether or not current Chiefs owner Clark Hunt should consider changing the name of his franchise is not a debate we’re having here. Rather, the goal here is merely to consider some alternatives should the the organization decide to go in a different direction.

Kc chiefs mascot history

The Kansas City Chiefs football organization was founded in 1960 by Lamar Hunt, a businessman from Dallas, Texas. The club, originally established as the Dallas Texans, made its debut as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL), another brainchild of Hunt’s. In fact, Hunt played such an influential role in the founding of the AFL (and its eventual merger with the National Football League in 1970), that the AFC trophy—awarded to the team that wins the AFC Championship—is named after him.

After a three-year stint in Dallas, the club relocated to Kansas City and changed its name. The move made an impact. Energized by a fanatic fanbase and a team full of future Hall of Famers, the Chiefs qualified for both the first and the fourth world championship games, eventually besting the Minnesota Vikings to claim the club’s only Super Bowl title—which, not coincidentally, was also named by Hunt.

Decades of Fanhood

Nearly 60 years have passed since the Chiefs moved to Kansas City, and one could argue that the fanbase is stronger than ever. The club has racked up almost 500 total wins, retired 10 numbers, qualified for three Super Bowls and won a world championship.

In the 1980s, the Chiefs retooled its roster after the glory days of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. Eventually, the Chiefs Kingdom experienced a renaissance in the 1990s—overseen by Head Coach Marty Shottenheimer and a stout defense spearheaded by all-timers Derrick Thomas and Neil Smith. Dick Vermeil then ushered in an era of high-flying offense during the mid-2000s, followed by Andy Reid’s hire in 2013, which returned the organization to prominence.

Between Hall of Fame players and fan favorites, countless unforgettable athletes have lined up on both sides of the ball for the Chiefs. Players with their numbers retired include Len Dawson, Jan Stenerud, Emmitt Thomas, Abner Haynes, Stone Johnson, Mack Lee Hill, Derrick Thomas, Willie Lanier, Bobby Bell and Buck Buchanan. Other popular team members from the past include Christian Okoye, Joe Montana, Neil Smith, Will Shields, Tony Gonzalez, Trent Green, Brian Waters, Dante Hall, Priest Holmes, Jamaal Charles and Derrick Johnson, among countless others.

In 2020, the Chiefs are making their long-awaited return to the big game, exactly 50 years after winning their first championship. Led behind all-world quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the dangerous passing attack of Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins and Mecole Hardman, the “Legion of Zoom” looks to finish the job with a victory in Miami.

Fun Trivia

• Before Arrowhead Stadium was constructed, the Chiefs first played at Municipal Stadium. During the club’s inaugural season, box seats could be purchased for $7 and reserved seats for just $6.
• Arrowhead Stadium is the loudest outdoor stadium in the world, having recorded a reading of 142.2 decibels during a 2014 Monday Night Football game against the New England Patriots.
• In 1989, running back Christian Okoye became the first Chief to ever lead the NFL in rushing, with 1,480 yards.
• Kicker Nick Lowery, who’d previously been cut 11 times by eight different teams, was signed by the Chiefs in 1980. Lowery went on to become the Chiefs’ all-time leading scorer.
• K.C. Wolf, the Chiefs’ current mascot, debuted in 1989. In 2006, K.C. Wolf became the first NFL mascot to be inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame.
• In sum, there are 36 players, coaches and executives in the Chiefs Hall of Fame.
• The winningest head coach in team history is Pro Football Hall of Famer Hank Stram, who led the Texans/Chiefs to a record of 124-76-10 from 1960 to 1974.

Go to VisitKC.com/Chiefs for a full listing of partner big game events and related content.

Sources

• Kansas City Chiefs History
• Chiefs Hall of Honor
• Pro Football Reference

Two mascots headed to the playoffs have history beyond the field

The Texans and Chiefs might be enemies during Sunday's playoff game, but the teams mascots' have a relationship that means more than a single game.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Texans and Chiefs might be enemies during Sunday's playoff game, but the teams mascots' relationship means more than a single game.

Days before the big game, Dan Meers spoke to a group of students in the Kansas City area about attitude, behavior and character. The presentation wasn't all serious, the goofy head behind Meers gave away who he is.

For 30 years, he's performed as the Kansas City Chiefs mascot. However, he does more than games.

Each year, Meers dresses up as K.C. Wolf and makes around 600 appearances. Some of those are school shows where he motivates kids and shares silly stories about himself.

"Mascots. We use this stuff called ibuprofen every now and then," Meers said. "Your teachers use that stuff too."

Meers also lets kids get up close to the costume. A unique touch that one Kansas City native remembers well.

In fifth grade, Andrew Johnson wore K.C. Wolf's uniform. "From that day forward, I knew exactly what I was going to do for the rest of my life," Johnson recalled. "I was going to be a professional mascot."

Johnson's mascot journey started in high school, where once again, he called upon the K.C. Wolf.

"Andrew used to call me up at Arrowhead and said, 'Hey, I'm a high school mascot. I know you're going to be at the local grocery store, would you mind if I come with my high school costume and follow you around the store?' I thought, 'Well, it's kind of weird, but what the heck, come on,'" Meers recalled.

The awkward moments turned into something special as Meers hired Johnson as the back-up K.C. Wolf performer.

"You want somebody that's going to represent your organization in a positive way," Meers explained. "That's why I knew Andrew wouldn't be around Kansas City long. He's such a great guy and a great role model."

Johnson didn't last long in Kansas City. He's now in the NFL himself.

Johnson is the Texans' mascot, Toro. "A lot of the character that I portray in Toro are things that I learned from Dan," Johnson explained.

Being two NFL mascots has its challenges, including this weekend. The Texans, and the Chiefs play each other Sunday for a chance to advance to the AFC Championship.

"I cheer for him as long as he's not playing the Kansas City Chiefs," Meers said. "When he's playing the Kansas City Chiefs, I hope he loses this weekend."

"There's no bet this week," Johnson said. "But, I'm betting on the Texans." The two might be enemies this weekend, but their friendship will endure. Johnson is thankful for what Meers has done to get him to the Texans.

"He's taught me a lot about how to be a good mascot, how to entertain people and how to treat people," Johnson explained. "But, he's taught me more about how to be a man of faith, a father, a husband."

An influence Meers never saw coming when he placed his big, goofy-eyed character on the floor of Johnson's elementary school.

"My goal is just to have a positive impact on young people, whether they grow up to be doctors, teachers, plumbers, whatever they choose to do in life," Meers said. "Andrew just happened to grow-up to be another NFL mascot."

Follow Nick Natario on Facebook and Twitter.

The revival of the live horse mascot was well-received by fans, as it provided a connection to the team's long-standing history. In addition to the live horse mascot, the Chiefs also have a beloved character mascot named K.C. Wolf. K.C. Wolf, introduced in 1989, is a person dressed in a wolf costume. The mascot's name, K.C. Wolf, incorporates the team's initials and represents the city it plays in. K.C. Wolf, as the team's official mascot, participates in various events, including community appearances, charity events, and game day activities. The mascot's high energy and enthusiastic personality add to the excitement and entertainment value of Chiefs games. The Chiefs' rich mascot history, with live horse mascot Warpaint and character mascot K.C. Wolf, adds to the team's identity and connection with its fan base. Both mascots have become iconic symbols of the team and help create a memorable game day experience for fans..

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K.C. Wolf's Rise to Fame: How the Kansas City Chiefs Mascot Captured the hearts of Fans