In sports, gone are the days when at least a portion of the game was not slathered in money and sponsors. While owners of teams have always tried to make money, the lengths nowadays to which they and the TV networks covering the sport have gone to squeeze out every drop of cash has gotten somewhat ridiculous. There's the Bud Light Replay, the Chevy Play of the Day, the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (formerly the Motor City Bowl, which was a pretty cool name and you also knew where it was being played), the Capitol One Bowl was originally the Citrus Bowl and at one point called the Ourhouse.com Florida Citrus Bowl (God forbid they misspelled that one in the sports pages), and on and on.
The same has occurred with stadiums and arenas, which used to be named to match the owners' outsize egos or for some geographic locale or noble idea that resonated with fans: Comiskey Park, Wrigley Field, RFK Stadium, Candlestick Park, Boston Garden. So, in that vein AdvisorOne, using some research by the SportsBusiness Journal, gives you the Top 7 Richest Stadium Naming Deals centering only on financial services firms, which are ranked according to average annual payout of the deal. 7) Prudential Center: Newark, N.J.
Team: Nets (moving to Brooklyn for 2012-13 season) and Devils
Company: Prudential Financial
Deal: $105.3 million, 20 years, $5.26 million/year
Ends in 2027
6) TD Garden: Boston
Team: Celtics and Bruins
Company: TD Bank
Deal: $119.1 million, 20 years, $5.95 million/year
Ends 2025
5) Lincoln Financial Field: Philadelphia
Team: Eagles
Company: Lincoln National
Deal: $139.6 million, 20 years, $6.98 million/year
Ends in 2022 4) Bank of America Stadium: Charlotte, N.C.
Team: Panthers
Company: Bank of America
Deal: $140 million, 20 years, $7 million/year