All-Time Largest Stadium Naming Rights Deals In US Sports

The United States is home to some of the most lucrative stadium naming rights deals in the world.

The deals range from multi-billion dollar agreements with financial giants to partnerships with tech startups. These deals have become a staple across US stadiums with brands paying more and more to have their name and identity linked to a building that millions of fans walk into, watch on television, and will be talking about. 

The biggest naming rights deals in US sports history have helped turn brand names into household words, while simultaneously providing teams and leagues with a vital source of revenue to fund state-of-the-art facilities.

Crypto.com Arena - $700 Million (2021)

In November 2021, Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com announced a landmark $700 million, 20-year deal to acquire the naming rights to the iconic Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, renaming it Crypto.com Arena. The name change took effect on Christmas Day 2021, timed to coincide with the Lakers' nationally televised home game against the Brooklyn Nets.

The deal dwarfed the $116 million Staples had paid over the previous 20 years, and at the time of signing was widely reported as the largest naming rights contract in the history of sports.

The arena is home to four major professional franchises: the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers, the NHL's Los Angeles Kings, and the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, making it one of the most high-profile and heavily used venues in world sport.
SoFi Stadium - $625 Million (2019)

When the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers needed a name for their gleaming new $5 billion home in Inglewood, California, it was San Francisco-based fintech company Social Finance (better known as SoFi) that stepped forward. The 20-year deal, reportedly worth around $625 million, was announced in September 2019 and immediately stood as one of the richest naming rights agreements for a sports venue in NFL history.

SoFi was a company barely a decade old at the time, known primarily for student loan refinancing. Putting its name on the most expensive stadium ever built, and one set to host the Super Bowl and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2028 Olympics, was a transformative marketing play. In a city full of entertainment giants and global sports brands, SoFi bought instant legitimacy alongside instant visibility.

MetLife Stadium - $400 Million (2011)

MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the shared home of the NFL's New York Giants and New York Jets, secured a 25-year naming rights deal with insurance giant MetLife in August 2011. The agreement was widely reported at around $400 million, representing approximately $17 to $20 million per year. Some estimates, factoring in the extended scope of the deal, have placed its total value higher.

MetLife had already been one of four cornerstone sponsors of the stadium before stepping up to acquire the full naming rights. The deal gave the insurer prime positioning on one of the most valuable pieces of real estate in American sport: a $1.6 billion stadium that was the only venue in the NFL to host two teams simultaneously, and one that would go on to host Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014.

For the Giants and Jets, the partnership ended years of searching for a naming rights partner, and provided a significant revenue stream to help offset the enormous cost of building one of the most technically advanced stadiums in the league.
Citi Field - $400 Million (2006)

In November 2006, financial services giant Citigroup struck a 20-year, $400 million deal with the New York Mets for the naming rights to the team's then-under-construction ballpark in Queens, Citi Field. At £20 million per year, it was the largest stadium naming rights deal ever signed at the time – a figure that has since been dwarfed by the sums seen with deals such as the Crypto.com Arena.

The stadium opened in 2009 as the replacement for the beloved Shea Stadium, and its naming deal immediately drew scrutiny when Citigroup accepted $45 billion in federal bailout money during the financial crisis. Nevertheless, both parties honored the agreement, and Citi Field has remained one of the most recognizable ballparks in Major League Baseball.

Reliant Stadium - $300 Million (2000)

When the Houston Texans' new home opened in 2002, it did so under the name Reliant Stadium, the product of a $300 million naming rights deal struck with Reliant Energy in 2000. It was one of the longest naming rights agreements ever signed, reflecting the company's deep roots in the Houston community and its desire for long-term brand association with the city's NFL franchise.

The stadium became NRG Stadium in 2014 when Reliant's parent company NRG Energy rebranded the facility, but in a notable twist, the venue announced in 2026 that it would revert to the Reliant Stadium name in time for the Houston Texans' 25th NFL season.

A survey found that 90% of Houston-based NRG customers supported the name change, making it a rare example of a corporate rebranding being welcomed back rather than mourned.

The stadium has hosted two Super Bowls, multiple rodeos, and international soccer matches, and will serve as a FIFA World Cup venue in 2026, making it one of the most storied multi-purpose venues in American sport.
Gillette Stadium - $240 Million (2002)

The New England Patriots' home in Foxborough, Massachusetts has carried the Gillette name since 2002, when the razor brand, owned by Procter & Gamble, stepped in to replace the stadium's original naming rights partner, CMGI, which collapsed in the dot-com bust. The deal, reportedly worth around $8 million per year, was agreed just as the Patriots were embarking on what would become the most dominant dynasty in NFL history.

Few naming rights deals have aged as well as Gillette's. By associating its brand with a team that went on to win six Super Bowls over the following two decades, Gillette received a level of positive exposure that its investment could never have anticipated.

Every Patriots playoff run, every Bill Belichick masterclass, every Tom Brady moment. All of it unfolded inside a stadium with Gillette's name on it, broadcast to hundreds of millions of viewers worldwide.

The stadium has been extended and renovated over the years, and Gillette's naming rights agreement runs through 2031, cementing its place as one of the longest-standing partnerships in NFL stadium history.

Levi's Stadium - $220 Million (2013)

In July 2013, Levi Strauss & Co. agreed to a 20-year, $220 million naming rights deal with the San Francisco 49ers for their brand new stadium in Santa Clara, California, paying approximately $11 million per year to put the denim brand's name on the venue. 

The partnership made cultural sense from the start. Levi's is a San Francisco institution, having been founded in the city during the Gold Rush era, and the 49ers are one of the Bay Area's most storied franchises. The deal gave the jeans company a prominent presence in Silicon Valley, the heartbeat of global innovation, and aligned the brand with a team in one of the NFL's strongest markets.

In January 2024, the partnership was extended for a further 10 years through to 2043, with the new deal worth $17 million per year, a significant step up that reflects both the growth of the naming rights market and the continued strength of the 49ers as a commercial property. With the extended agreement factored in, the total value of the Levi's naming rights relationship with the 49ers is now substantially higher than the original $220 million.

FedEx Field - $205 Million (1999)

In 1999, FedEx signed a 27-year, $205 million deal for the naming rights to Washington's NFL stadium in Landover, Maryland, one of the first and largest naming rights agreements of its era. The deal was struck when Dan Snyder purchased the Washington franchise, and it gave FedEx prominent branding on one of the most politically and culturally high-profile NFL venues in the country.

The partnership lasted for 25 years before coming to an abrupt end in February 2024, when FedEx exercised an opt-out clause triggered by the change in team ownership following Josh Harris's $6.05 billion acquisition of the Commanders. The company cited a desire to refocus its marketing investments aligned with its broader global strategy. The remaining two years of the deal were worth approximately $15 million to Washington, and the stadium has since been rebranded under a new naming rights agreement.

A $205 million deal that once seemed enormous now sits at the lower end of this list, a testament to the staggering growth in stadium valuations and corporate sponsorship spending across American sport.

Barclays Center - $200 Million (2007)

Shortly after Citigroup announced its deal for Citi Field, London-based banking giant Barclays agreed to pay a reported $200 million over 20 years for the naming rights to the future home of the then-New Jersey Nets, a proposed arena in Brooklyn that would become Barclays Center. 

For Barclays, the motivation was straightforward: building its brand in the United States. The bank was already a major sports sponsor in England as the title partner of the Premier League, but the US market required a different strategy. Putting its name on an arena in one of the world's most famous boroughs, in one of the world's most media-saturated cities, gave Barclays the kind of sustained visibility no conventional advertising campaign could match.