What's In A Name?
Everything today is branded. Race cars have sponsors, arena walls are covered with signs from Nike and Reebok, and even some team jerseys have brands posted right across the front.
New York and New Jersey used to be the exception. Most of their major sports stadiums were named after something other then a major company. There was Giants Stadium, Yankee Stadium, and Shea Stadium. The only major sponsor in New Jersey in the 90's and early 2000's was Continental Airlines Arena
In the past week alone, two major stadiums in the NY / NJ area have reportedly undergone name changes. Rutgers University announced that they would be changing the name of their recently renovated football stadium from Rutgers Stadium to High Point Solutions Stadium. Rutgers Stadium was the original name of the field since 1938.
Yesterday it was announced but not confirmed that the Jets and Giants had reached an agreement to change the name of their new stadium from New Meadowlands Stadium to MetLife Field. MetLife is currently one of the four major sponsors in the stadium and has their own sponsored entrance gate. If the deal does go down, MetLife will pay 17 million dollars per year for the naming rights and the change will open up a major sponsorship opportunity for another company.
But what is in a name? Is it really necessary for a corporation to buy the rights to have their name on a building, especially in this economy? We saw what happened when the Citi bought the naming rights to the Mets new ballpark. The company almost went bankrupt right before Opening Day and left the Mets with a ton of speculation coming up to the stadium's first game.
Granted, sponsorships make teams money. We know that the Jets and Giants aren't exactly rolling in the dough after building a very expensive stadium, so the extra 17 million dollars a year should help them get out of the red. But is extra cash really worth ending traditions that have lasted a generation? You can't really think of stadiums or arenas that have their original names anymore. Yankee Stadium is the exception, but they have enough money to last them a life time. Even the famous Boston Garden lost it's name when the new TD Garden was built next door in 1997 (and TD Garden just doesn't have that same ring).
The question now is whether or not all teams will follow the same route. Will Fenway Park turn its back on 100 years of tradition to allow a bank or superstore to come in? Will the Yankees go down the Twins route and allow someone like Walmart or Target to buy the naming rights? When will the sponsoring stop, and at what lengths will teams go to make a little extra cash?
The only thing fans can do is wait. Despite the many times we have referred to our teams as if we played for them or ran the organization, we are completely defenseless in a team's decision making. This isn't American Idol, there is no fan voting (unless it's the All-Star Game, which we haven't exactly done too well with). If the owners see the opportunity to make extra money (see: NFL Lockout), they are going to do it.
Goodbye tradition, hello Target.
