As the Double-A Altoona Curve (Eastern League) prepare to formally unveil the team’s ballpark naming rights deal with Peoples Natural Gas, the Altoona Mirror has tried to pin down the possible financial take for the club by talking with industry experts. We generally agree with the stated six-figure annual payments spread over 10 to 15 years for deals at this level, but ballpark naming rights contracts can be complex and vary greatly based on numerous factors. Read more here.
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Naming rights are a great way to pay for venues. How come owners never use this source? Instead, they make the city and the taxpayers pay for the stadiums. Why? So they can pocket the rest of the money?
No owner can “make” a community pay for anything. That is a decision that is made by community leaders or taxpayers in a referendum. That said, naming rights are not sufficient to cover the note on a new ballpark. They can be used to mitigate the cost of a new facility, by (1) the owner of that facility selling the naming rights directly, or (2) including the estimated naming rights value in the negotiated lease payment, with the team selling the naming rights.
Alan