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For nine days in 1960, the Raiders were known as the "SeƱors"
TL;DR
In 1960, the Oakland Raiders were briefly renamed the 'SeƱors' for nine days due to public demand. The name change followed a contest that received over 10,000 submissions before settling on 'Raiders.'
You do indeed learn something new every day.
Today, we learned this: For nine days in 1960, the Oakland Raiders were known as the "SeƱors."
As posted by team's Twitter account, the change to Raiders happened on this day, 66 years ago. The video attached to the post includes quotes from local officials who explained that the change was made due to "public demand."
The franchise had partnered with the Oakland Tribune to hold a contest to come up with a name for the team. More than 10,000 submissions were made.
The finalists, per a 2020 item in the San Jose Mercury News, were Admirals, Lakers, Raiders, Diablos, Mavericks, Seawolves, Gauchos, Nuggets, SeƱors, Dons, Costers, Grandees, Sequoias, Missiles, Knights, Redwoods, Clippers, Jets, and Dolphins.
As the story goes, Tribune sports writer Scotty Stirling (who would later be the team's G.M.), there was a practical reason for resisting the name. "We donāt have the accent mark for the Ʊ in our headline type," Sirling said.
And so, nine days after the Oakland SeƱors were born, they disappeared. The Raiders arrived.
Q&A
Why were the Oakland Raiders called the 'SeƱors' for nine days in 1960?
The Oakland Raiders were renamed the 'SeƱors' for nine days in 1960 due to public demand following a contest that generated over 10,000 name submissions.
What were the other finalist names considered for the Raiders in 1960?
Other finalist names included Admirals, Lakers, Diablos, Mavericks, Seawolves, Gauchos, Nuggets, Dons, and several others before the team ultimately chose 'Raiders.'
