Legendary NFL broadcaster Al Michaels took a not-so-subtle jab at President Donald Trump during Thursday night’s NFL preseason broadcast, joking about the president’s decision to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America.”
The moment came during Amazon Prime Video’s broadcast of the Cleveland Browns’ preseason game against the New England Patriots. As the broadcast returned from a commercial break, the camera showed an aerial view of Cleveland, Ohio, with Lake Erie in the background.
Michaels, 81, used the shot to reference Trump’s executive order, which he signed earlier Thursday directing the federal government to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America” for federal purposes. The move came as tensions with Canada over a trade deal continue to escalate.
“That is Lake Erie. We think it is still called Lake Erie. We’re not quite sure at this point,” Michaels said. “But we’ll be by Lake something like Ontario or whatever it’s going to be called by the time we get to Buffalo [for Week 1].”
Michaels added, “Anyway, you know what I’m talking about. Some of you do. Read the news.”
His broadcast partner, Kirk Herbstreit, 57, appeared to stay out of the joke, responding only with a brief “Some of us do [know about the name change].”
The joke came just hours after Trump signed the executive order renaming Lake Ontario. The change applies to U.S. federal usage and does not change what the lake is called in Canada.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney rejected the name change, saying the lake’s name is more than 400 years old and predates both the founding of Canada and the U.S.
Carney said on X that Canadians would continue to call it Lake Ontario “then, now and always.” Other Canadian officials, including Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, also dismissed Trump’s move.
Ford wrote on X, ‘It’s Lake Ontario to Canadians and the rest of the world. Now and forever,” while Houston said, “It’s Lake Ontario, buddy.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul, whose state borders the lake, likewise rejected the new name, saying, “New York won’t be calling it that.”
Trump’s executive order directs the U.S. Interior Department to update the federal Geographic Names Information System and requires federal agencies to use “Lake America,” but it does not have authority over Canada or other countries, international organizations or private entities.
Trump’s order is the latest in a series of geographic name changes pursued by his administration. In 2025, Trump directed the federal government to use “Gulf of America” instead of “Gulf of Mexico,” while his administration also restored the name Mount McKinley for Alaska’s Denali.
Michaels has been Amazon Prime Video’s lead Thursday Night Football play-by-play announcer since 2022, working alongside Herbstreit. He is a legendary broadcaster best known for his famous “Miracle on Ice” call at the 1980 Winter Olympics.
The Independent has contacted the White House and Amazon Prime Video for comment.
