As a part of their new arena management deal with the city of Glendale, the Phoenix Coyotes will be re-branded as the Arizona Coyotes as soon as it is feasible. Realistically this means that in 2013 they will have a new name, but just because it is a part of their new arena deal doesn’t mean that their new owner wasn’t already going to do it. Personally, I don’t like this change at all. I was born in Phoenix, Arizona and I think the Phoenix Coyotes has a way better ring to it than the Arizona Coyotes.
According to CBS Sports, the new owner Greg Jamison has been considering the change since June. “It looks as if the Phoenix Coyotes will change their name although they will have to wait a year. Jamison wants to call the team the Arizona Coyotes, joining the NHL’s Arizona Cardinals and baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks as professional sports teams seeking a statewide appeal.”
Back then it had just been a plan, but now it is officially a stipulation of their arena deal. The other details of the arena deal have emerged and they are as follows:
The new agreement will also run for 20-years and Glendale will pay out $308 million arena management fees over the life of the contract, for an average of $15.4 million per year. For the first five years of the contract Glendale will receive $2.75 per ticket sold and $3.00 per ticket from sixth year to the end of the contract in 2031. Like the prior agreement, the city will receive 15% of arena naming rights.
For the first five-years of the deal Jamison’s group will pay $500,000 in rent annually for use of Jobing.com Arena. From years six through 12 the rent is bumped up to $650,000 per year. For the final ten-years the annual rent is $800,000.
This is a big deal for the Phoenix Coyotes, as they won’t have to move now and they season ticket holders will be happy that they get to keep their team. It’s just too bad for them that they keep losing money each season. Oh, and the fact that the NHL is currently locked out and isn’t close to a new deal.
H/T: Icethetics