On its 50th anniversary, Hartford, Connecticut’s iconic XL Center has officially been renamed to PeoplesBank Arena.
The Holyoke, Massachusetts-based company purchased the sponsorship rights for the former XL Center in a deal set to cost $20 million over ten years.
PeoplesBank will pay $850,000 for naming rights in its initial year, expected to grow to $2.4 million by the tenth year of the contract as reported by the Hartford Business Journal.
By comparison, Axa XL, headquartered in Stamford, invested $450,000 for naming rights this past year.
The new name was first revealed in a press release this past Monday by Connecticut state officials.
PeoplesBank CEO Tom Senechal was present, explaining the company’s choice to sponsor the Hartford venue.
“We chose to invest in this arena because we believe in Hartford,” Senechal said in the live announcement streamed by NBC Connecticut. “We believe in the revitalization happening here, the momentum building downtown, the renewed energy in the business district, the arts, the restaurants, the culture and of course, the sports.”
Originally known as the Hartford Civic Center until 2007, PeoplesBank Arena seats over 15,000 people and is the part-time host to both of the University of Connecticut’s championship-pedigree basketball programs, along with its men’s ice hockey program.
Basketball games for both teams are split between this arena and Gampel Pavillion, located in the center of the Storrs campus.
“To be associated with the prime tenants of this venue, the UConn men’s basketball and women’s basketball teams, is truly a great honor,” Senechal said.
The venue also hosts the Hartford Wolfpack, the AHL affiliate to the New York Rangers.
In the announcement, Governor Ned Lamont even hinted at the possibility of PeoplesBank Arena becoming the new home for the Connecticut Sun, the state’s only professional sports team.
In addition to sports games, PeoplesBank Arena provides a variety of other entertainment forms such as concerts. Among artists to have performed at the arena include Taylor Swift, Billy Joel, Drake, Pearl Jam, and many others.
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