TerryP
Staff
First Commonwealth Stadium underwent a facelift and now it’s getting a brand new name.
With an emphasis on “brand.”
The home of the University of Kentucky football team will now be known as Kroger Field, per a deal struck between the university, the UK Athletics department and marketing partner JMI Sports.
“An unprecedented partnership that pairs two iconic brands: UK and Kroger, whose reach extends throughout the commonwealth and far, far beyond our borders,” university President Eli Capilouto said of the agreement, which is for 12 years and $1.85 million annually.
The stadium name change is still contingent on approval by the university’s Board of Trustees at its meeting Tuesday. It is the first name change since the venue opened in 1973.
On the west end of the stadium facing Nicholasville Road, there soon will be new signage replacing the “Welcome to Commonwealth Stadium” with “Welcome to Kroger Field.”
But that is just the start of the changes, which will include new interior, exterior and directional signage. All UK materials referencing the stadium will immediately refer to the new name: Kroger Field.
Kentucky also has agreed to place the Kroger logo on the field opposite the Southeastern Conference logo on the 25-yard lines, one official confirmed.
“This partnership is a lot more than the name of our football stadium,” Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said of the deal with Kroger. “It’s about our shared commitment to this university and to this state.”
Read more here: After 44 years, Commonwealth Stadium has a new name: Kroger Field
With an emphasis on “brand.”
The home of the University of Kentucky football team will now be known as Kroger Field, per a deal struck between the university, the UK Athletics department and marketing partner JMI Sports.
“An unprecedented partnership that pairs two iconic brands: UK and Kroger, whose reach extends throughout the commonwealth and far, far beyond our borders,” university President Eli Capilouto said of the agreement, which is for 12 years and $1.85 million annually.
The stadium name change is still contingent on approval by the university’s Board of Trustees at its meeting Tuesday. It is the first name change since the venue opened in 1973.
On the west end of the stadium facing Nicholasville Road, there soon will be new signage replacing the “Welcome to Commonwealth Stadium” with “Welcome to Kroger Field.”
But that is just the start of the changes, which will include new interior, exterior and directional signage. All UK materials referencing the stadium will immediately refer to the new name: Kroger Field.
Kentucky also has agreed to place the Kroger logo on the field opposite the Southeastern Conference logo on the 25-yard lines, one official confirmed.
“This partnership is a lot more than the name of our football stadium,” Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said of the deal with Kroger. “It’s about our shared commitment to this university and to this state.”
Read more here: After 44 years, Commonwealth Stadium has a new name: Kroger Field
