Mar

8

Five years ago I read here about "the inordinate tendency of companies that bought the rights to name stadiums after themselves to fall into bankruptcy, financial difficulties, or drastic declines in market value." A Bloomberg article from today offers another data point towards that pattern:

ACC Capital Holdings' need for a financial lifeline from Citigroup Inc. is the latest sign that putting a company's name on a sports stadium doesn't guarantee its business will thrive. Ameriquest Mortgage, the Orange, California-based company's subprime mortgage unit, signed a naming-rights agreement in May 2004 with Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers. The 30-year contract was valued at $75 million … ACC Capital is hoping to avoid the fate of Enron Corp., which named the home stadium of baseball's Houston Astros and then went bankrupt. The field is now called Minute Maid Park. Citigroup knows about naming rights as well as mortgages. The New York Mets' new stadium, scheduled to open for the 2009 season, will be known as Citi Field under a 20-year agreement between the New York-based company and the team.


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