What’s in a name? The potential for a nine-figure payday, apparently. The Washington Nationals are putting the naming rights for Nationals Park up for sale and hoping to score big.
This isn’t the first time—a previous effort when the park opened in 2007 did not result in any suitable namers.
Washington Business Journal explains:
The 2008-09 economic recession prompted the club to put the sale of naming rights on the back burner, where it has remained. But with the Nationals still competitive on the field, featuring reigning National League Most Valuable Player Bryce Harper as one of the sport’s biggest stars, and the ballpark scheduled to serve as host of the 2018 MLB All-Star Game, club executives felt the time was right to restart sales efforts.
This comes as the overall naming-rights market has heated up. More than a dozen new deals have been announced since the beginning of last year, several with nine-figure financial commitments.
And, the arena-currently-known-as Verizon Center, where the Wizards, Capitals, and forthcoming American Football League team call home, is also looking for a new namesake when its current naming rights deal ends in 2018.
Yes, we’ve heard all about how we’ll end up with Booz Allen Park, but what if the executive search team focused on some of the other businesses D.C. has to offer? After all, the Nats decided to look local for a couple of its food vendors …
Nationals&Pizza Park
Photos by Rob Carr/Getty Images and Maggie Gaudaen.
C’mon, this fast-casual pizza joint already married folks for free. Why not underwrite some home runs, too? (Unfortunately for those who want Nats, nuptials and ‘za in one fell swoop, &Pizza told us “It is not in our plans right now.”)
sweetgreen Garden
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images, modified with kale from Andre Eleazar.
What’s more American than a gourmet chopped salad with sesame noodles and a lil vinaigrette? Call the landscapers to turn all the shrubbery into kale, and we can have a truly farm-to-nosebleeds experience.
Ben’s Chili Bowl
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images, modified with mural from Ted Eytan and sign via Ben’s Chili Bowl.
The iconic restaurant is already a vendor inside the stadium, so this one isn’t too much of a leap. We just need to make sure that they don’t insist on painting a big Bill Cosby mural out front.
LivingSocial Stadium
Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images, modified with logo via LivingSocial.
This struggling business needs to make bold changes to survive. Who needs employees when you’ve got your name in lights?
Let’s be honest—all of these ideas (even the LivingSocial one) make more sense than “Ignite Your #Natitude.”
Update: Looks like at least one candidate is thinking about it …
.@DCist How about one of the only local businesses that predates the National League? #since1866
— W S Jenks & Son (@wsjenks) March 22, 2016
Rachel Kurzius