Take me out to the ballgame

Photograph of M&I Bank baseball team, 1916.

One of baseball’s most enduring strengths is its ability to bring people together. From the early-twentieth century, Marshall & Ilsley (M&I) Bank employees bonded together over their love of the game. It was a way they could let off some steam after a long day on the job and connect with their colleagues and neighbors.

Photograph of M&I Bank baseball team, 1983.

The Corporate Archives has one of M&I’s original uniforms from the 1910s in our collection. The uniform is one of the earliest examples of the bank’s commitment to local sports, and it has been preserved for over a century. Starting in the 1980s, the M&I baseball team also began participating in the newly created Banker’s Baseball Team League.

Photograph of M&I Bank baseball team, 1985.

The M&I sports legacy continues today. In 2012, BMO invested in naming rights for the BMO Harris Bradley Center, providing “a fiscal bridge” from the old arena until the new arena was completed in 2018. BMO is also proud to be the bank of the Milwaukee Bucks and to support the University of Wisconsin Badgers. BMO believes that supporting local sports, from professional teams to after-school programs for kids, helps build our community, one pitch at a time.