The Atlanta Falcons changed their profile picture on October 21. The internet lost its mind.
The image revives the team's original 1966 logo: a black falcon over red, white and gold stripes.
Within hours, that nickname was trending on X. Fans compared the bird and stripes to Nazi-era German imagery.
'I give this a nein/10.' 'Preparing to invade Poland.' The memes wrote themselves by Thursday morning.
By early Thursday the post had 11 million views. It later passed 15 million, with thousands of comments.
Fans used AI tools to paste the logo into World War II scenes. The team's 'End Racism' slogan got mocked.
At first the Falcons said nothing. Then a team rep told NBC News: 'We do not have a new logo.'
In September 2024, another Falcons profile picture drew the same Nazi comparisons. Same throwback, same backlash.
Logo expert Chris Creamer told NBC News the team meant no harm. A throwback profile photo is a normal practice.
But Creamer said the team could have taken the image down once replies exploded. Keeping it up looked stubborn.
'Can we get a profile pic of us Winning a Game?' Many fans care more about the 2-4 record than the logo.
The Falcons host the unbeaten 49ers on Sunday in 1966 throwbacks. A win could bury this story fast.
Get the full breakdown, key numbers, and what happens next.
Read on Rive News