Using 'go' to cheer on sports teams is now OK, says Quebec language watchdog

Maura Forrest · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jul 03, 2025 12:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

Quebec's connection watchdog has changed its tune connected whether it's acceptable to usage the connection "go" to cheer connected sports teams.

In a caller line posted successful its online dictionary, the Office québécois de la langue française says that portion "allez" is the preferred term, it's present "partially legitimized" to usage the English connection to amusement encouragement.

The flip-flop comes aft the bureau took a hard enactment with Montreal's transit agency, pressing it for months successful 2024 to scrub the connection "go" from the physics signs connected much than 1,000 metropolis buses.

The watchdog confirmed it had changed its presumption aft The Canadian Press obtained a bid of emails done entree to accusation legislation, revealing it gave the transit bureau a greenish airy to usage "go" successful June.

The reversal followed a nationalist outcry connected the eve of the Montreal Canadiens' archetypal playoff location crippled successful April, erstwhile the Montreal Gazette reported however the transit bureau had replaced "Go! Canadiens Go!" with "Allez! Canadiens Allez!" to enactment connected the watchdog's bully side.

The revelations prompted French-language Minister Jean-François Roberge to intervene, declaring that the look "Go Habs Go" is portion of Quebec culture, and that immoderate aboriginal complaints astir the slogan would beryllium dismissed.

That connection verged connected governmental interference and placed the watchdog successful a hard position, according to 1 expert.

"The bureau had to respond to a governmental order," said Benoît Melançon, emeritus prof of French lit astatine Université de Montréal. "The curate said, 'You volition judge this,' truthful the bureau had to find a mode to judge it."

The transit bureau says it hasn't decided whether it volition enactment the connection "go" backmost connected its autobus displays.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson said the bureau is present "beginning its reflection connected the subject."

'Go' is simply a 'partially legitimized' word: OQLF

In an April statement, Dominique Malack, the president of the connection office, agreed that the slogan "Go Habs Go" is anchored successful Quebec's history.

Still, she went connected to accidental that the connection "go" is an Anglicism, and that nationalist bodies person an work to usage "exemplary" French, which includes utilizing lone French words successful their signage.

Emails released to The Canadian Press amusement the transit bureau asked the watchdog successful May, pursuing the uproar, for authorization to commencement utilizing "go" again.

A period later, connected June 6, the connection bureau directed transit officials to its caller introduction for the connection "allez" successful its online dictionary of terminology, a notation usher for the due usage of French successful Quebec.

The leafage notes however the Anglicism "go" has been utilized successful Quebec since astatine slightest the 1980s and is "well-established" successful communal parlance. "It is considered to beryllium partially legitimized," the introduction says.

When asked by The Canadian Press to remark connected the recently released email correspondence, the watchdog confirmed it had updated its position.

"The bureau present considers that a nationalist assemblage tin usage the interjection spell successful a discourse of encouragement without this compromising the work of exemplarity incumbent upon it nether the Charter of the French Language," spokesperson Gilles Payer told The Canadian Press successful an email.

Payer confirmed the introduction was recently published connected May 30. "The media sum of the lawsuit concerning the usage of the borrowed connection 'go' successful a sports discourse led the bureau to officially measure the acceptability" of the word, helium said. Melançon, the French lit professor, said the caller rationale — particularly the word "partially legitimized" — suggests the bureau was uneasy with the change.

"This indispensable person fixed emergence to immoderate beauteous aggravated interior debates," helium said. "'Do we instrumentality into relationship what the curate is telling america oregon bash we not instrumentality it into account? If we don't instrumentality it into account, what are the consequences? If we do, however bash we warrant changing our minds?'''

At slightest 1 transit bureau authoritative felt dubious astir the archetypal complaint, which related to a autobus displaying the words "Go! CF Mtl Go!" successful enactment of Montreal's nonrecreational shot club.

She called the contented a "grey zone" successful a June 2024 email to colleagues.

"We've been utilizing the connection 'go' for years without a problem," she wrote. "Are we going to alteration everything due to the fact that of 1 complaint?"

But by aboriginal that month, the bureau had decided to scrap the word, which progressive manually updating the show connected each of much than 1,000 buses implicit a play of months.

The bureau has said nary further alteration volition beryllium made earlier the buses acquisition regular attraction successful the fall.

The connection bureau has received astatine slightest 2 different complaints astir the connection "go" successful the past 5 years, according to a effect to a abstracted access-to-information request.

In 2023, idiosyncratic complained astir the slogan "Go Habs Go" appearing connected an outdoor billboard.

That ailment was dismissed due to the fact that the look is simply a trademark.

A akin ailment successful 2021 targeted the hashtag GoHabsGo that appears successful oversized letters extracurricular the Bell Centre successful Montreal, the location arena of the Canadiens.

The idiosyncratic who filed the ailment suggested that to comply with Quebec's connection rules, the look "Allez les Habitants allez" should look alongside the English slogan, successful larger letters. "And yes, I'm serious, if the instrumentality applies, past use it!:)" the idiosyncratic wrote.

According to the connection watchdog, that ailment was resolved pursuing an intervention, though it provided nary details.

A spokesperson for the hockey squad declined to comment.

The GoHabsGo motion remains successful place.