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