Sponsorship: Naming-rights market

In 2010, New Jersey built a football stadium that house both the New York Jets and Giants and the stadium has no corporate nameplate just like the $1.3 billion dollar stadium in Arlington, Texas where the Dallas Cowboys play. Today there are many deals going on between professional sport teams and naming-right sponsors. For example, JPMorgan Chase’s naming-rights deal with the Golden State Warriors’ future arena and U.S. Bank naming the Minnesota Vikings’ new $1.1 billion home field, opening in July. The naming-rights market is now heated enough that in August, Mercedes-Benz said it was putting its name on its second NFL stadium, the $1.4 billion Atlanta Falcons facility opening in 2017. This came a year after the Atlanta Braves announced SunTrust as a naming-rights partner for their $672 million ballpark and SunTrust Park will be open in the year 2017. Mike Belcher, vice president of media and consumer engagement at T-Mobile, said that “Naming rights are a brand association that cuts through the media clutter and can’t be DVR’d." He was basically referring to his company’s recent naming deal with the $375 million T-Mobile Arena, opening on the Las Vegas Strip in April. Even though T-Mobile can't compete with competitors like Verizon and AT&T, an arena naming-rights deal increased the brands share of voice. This chart below shows the number of naming-rights deals that have been announced since January 2015.

NAMING-RIGHTS DEALS ANNOUNCED SINCE JANUARY 2015

VENUE (CITY)	TENANT(S)	TERMS
Mercedes-Benz Stadium(a) (Atlanta)	Atlanta Falcons; Atlanta United FC(b); Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl	27 years / $324.0 million
Chase Center(a) (San Francisco)	Golden State Warriors	20 years / $300.0 million-$400.0 million
Videotron Centre (Quebec City)	QMJHL Quebec Remparts	25 years / $237.5 million(c)
U.S. Bank Stadium(a) (Minneapolis)	Minnesota Vikings	25 years / $220.0 million
Nissan Stadium (Nashville)	Tennessee Titans	NA
National Car Rental Stadium(d) (St. Louis)	St. Louis Rams	20 years / $158.0 million
Golden 1 Center(a) (Sacramento)	Sacramento Kings	20 years / $120.0 million
Spirit Communications Park(a) (Columbia, S.C.)	Class A Columbia Fireflies	10 years / $3.5 million
Silverstein Eye Centers Arena (Independence, Mo.)	ECHL Missouri Mavericks; MISL Missouri Comets	10 years / $2.75 million
MUSC Health Stadium (Charleston, S.C.)	USL Charleston Battery	5 years / $925,000
T-Mobile Arena(a) (Las Vegas)	TBD	Just under 15 years(e)
Vivint Smart Home Arena (Salt Lake City)	Utah Jazz	10 years/NA
SNHU Arena(f) (Manchester, N.H.)	ECHL Manchester Monarchs	10 years/NA
Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center (Flint, Mich.)	OHL Flint Firebirds; MASL Waza Flo	NA
Jimmy Johns Field(a) (Utica, Mich.)	United Shore Professional Baseball League (Independent) Utica Unicorns	NA
Mapfre Stadium (Columbus)	Columbus Crew	NA
Target Center(g) (Minneapolis)	Minnesota Timberwolves; Minnesota Lynx	NA

(a): Under construction
(b): Expansion team scheduled to begin playing in 2017
(c): Converted Feb. 16 at a rate of $1 Canadian = $0.719657 U.S., per XE.com.
(d): Announced as an incentive to keep the team in St. Louis. However, the Rams will begin play in Los Angeles this fall.
(e): According to a SportsBusiness Journal source familiar with the deal
(f): Begins Sept. 1, after the current 15-year naming-rights contract with Verizon Wireless expires.
(g): Extension
NA: Not available
Source: SportsBusiness Journal research

Introduction

Hello my name is Karson Frisk. I'm currently a undergraduate freshman at Slippery Rock University majoring in Sports Management. I'm 21 years old and I was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. I play hockey and baseball. My favorite hobbies to do are go hiking, fishing, camping, hunting, workout and watch movies. I'm very smart, kind, honest, charming and easy to talk to. Got any questions feel free to ask.