SEATTLE (CelebrityAccess) Safeco Field, home to the Seattle Mariners, has its first new name since it opened in 1999 – T-Mobile Park.
The Bellevue, Wash.-based telecommunications company announced a 24-year naming-rights deal with the Mariners Dec. 19. The deal still needs to be approved by the Washington State Major League Baseball Stadium Public Facilities District, according to the Seattle Times.
T-Mobile will pay the baseball team $87.5 million for the deal with an annual average of $3.5 million, according to Forbes.
“T-Mobile has a deep commitment to this community, a passion for customer service and a well-earned reputation as a leader in innovation,” John Stanton, the Mariners’ chairman and managing partner, said in a statement. “These are the qualities that make T-Mobile the right partner to name this iconic ballpark.”
T-Mobile is the process of merging with competitor Sprint, building a potential $26.5 billion company.
“The Un-carrier is always shaking things up for the better, and this time we’re going BIG with the Seattle Mariners for all their fans,” John Legere, T-Mobile’s CEO, said in a statement. “T-Mobile Park isn’t just some corporate-branded sponsorship to us … this is about supporting the community and our hometown Mariners in building a World Series-caliber team!”
New signage at the venue is expected to go up almost immediately.
T-Mobile reported a revenue stream of more than $40.6 billion last year with a profit of $4.5 billion, according to the Times.
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