Cleveland will no longer be called the "Indians", the team have confirmed.

The MLB club announced in July they were considering a change, with the NFL's Washington "Redskins" also reviewing a name deemed offensive by Native American groups.

Washington soon became the Washington Football Team, and Cleveland have now followed suit.

A statement on Monday said: "Since July, we have conducted an extensive process to learn how our team name affected different constituencies and whether it aligned with our organizational values.

"As a result of that process, we have decided to move forward with changing the current team name and determining a new, non-Native American-based name for the franchise.

"We believe our organization is at its best when we can unify our community and bring people together - and we believe a new name will allow us to do this more fully."

Cleveland were originally known as the Blues before switching to the Broncos and then the Naps. The Indians name started in the 1915 season.

Team owner and chairman Paul Dolan said: "Hearing first-hand the stories and experiences of Native American people, we gained a deeper understanding of how tribal communities feel about the team name and the detrimental effects it has on them.

"We also spoke to local civic leaders who represent diverse populations in our city and who highlighted the negative impact our team name has had on our broader population and on under-represented groups across our community.

"I am truly grateful for their engagement and input, which I found enlightening and insightful.

"When a sports team is aligned with its community, it unlocks the ability to unite people from different backgrounds and bring people together in support of their home team.

"While 'Indians' will always be a part of our history, it is time to move forward and work to unify our stakeholders and fans through a new name."

Dolan also wrote an open letter to Cleveland fans, saying decisions on a future name "are complex and will take time".

Cleveland dropped their Chief Wahoo logo from their game jerseys and caps two years ago because it was deemed racist and offensive.