The name Chiefs, one might assume, was inspired by the native Americans who lived in the US heartland. That鈥檚 not really the case. In fact, oil tycoon Lamar Hunt, the team鈥檚 owner, selected 鈥淐hiefs鈥� in honor of Kansas City Mayor H. Roe Bartle, whose nickname was 鈥淭he Chief.鈥� Bartle, who served as mayor from 1956 to 1963, was instrumental in bringing Hunt鈥檚 Dallas Texans to Kansas City in 1962, a move aimed at finding a market where the franchise, then in the AFL, would have the football market all to itself (rather than having to compete with the NFL鈥檚 Cowboys). Regardless of what inspired the Chiefs nickname, the team has made a connection with native Americans in other ways, such as using an arrowhead logo and playing in Arrowhead Stadium.
ORLIN WAGNER/AP
