The University of Louisville has announced that it is changing the name of its stadium, removing the ‘Papa John’ naming, after it became public that Papa John’s founder John Schnatter used a racial slur during a phone call. The stadium will now be simply called Cardinal Stadium instead of Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium.
In a statement, University of Louisville president Dr Neeli Bendapudi (above) said, “Over the last 24 hours our community has been fractured by the comments made by former U of L trustee John Schnatter. These comments were hurtful and unacceptable, and they do not reflect the values of our university.”
“I have stated since my first day on this job that my commitment to the University of Louisville is to make it a great place to learn, a great place to work, and a great place in which to invest. We can only accomplish this if we truly celebrate diversity, foster equity, and aim to achieve inclusion.”
The University of Louisville isn’t the only sports organization to cut ties with Papa John’s. Major League Baseball, with which the pizza chain had a promotional agreement known as ‘Papa Slams’ since 2016, is also terminating its relationship.
By Illya Verpraet
July 19, 2018
