The identities of many communities are built on their skylines and their sports teams.
Pittsburgh — and the whole of Western Pennsylvania, really — is no different.
That identity will change now with a deal that scrubs the name off the football stadium and replaces it with that of a different company. After 20 years, no one will play in Heinz Field, named after the iconic food brand that called Pittsburgh home long before merging with a larger company to form the monolithic Kraft Heinz.
Instead, the new name will be Acrisure Stadium.
Don’t know what Acrisure is? You’re probably not alone. It’s a financial tech insurance company headquartered in Michigan. The company, born in 2005, didn’t even exist when Heinz inked the 2001 deal to put its name on the brand new field that replaced Three Rivers Stadium.
Well, there’s nothing that says “football” and “fun” as much as financial tech insurance. The Steelers assured the public, however, that Acrisure CEO Greg Williams is a “lifelong” black-and-gold fan. The deal, on the other hand, points more toward green — money, not turf.
“Acrisure provided us with an opportunity to ensure our stadium continues to be a valuable asset for our fans as well as keeping up with the market value of NFL stadiums,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement.
It is no doubt a smart business decision. However, the lack of information about the money side is a bit troubling as the Steelers’ biggest physical asset, the stadium, is actually a public possession. It is owned not by the team but by the Sports and Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. The Steelers are the operators and make naming rights deals in that capacity.
More on Acrisure Stadium naming rights:
• Heinz Field no more: Steelers, Acrisure finalize deal for stadium naming rights• Pittsburgh has plenty of places that have changed names
• Many Steelers fans underwhelmed by Heinz Field name change
• Never heard of Acrisure? Naming rights deal with Steelers stadium aims to change that
• How will the loss of stadium naming rights affect the Heinz legacy in Pittsburgh?
• Ben Roethlisberger sounds off on the Heinz Field name change
But the team needs to remember that when it sells those rights and changes the name of one of the area’s largest landmarks, it is selling a piece of our collective identity. The very least they owe the community in doing that is full disclosure of the nature of the deal.
Not that it matters. The area is known for long memories when it comes to names of places.
People who were born after Kaufmann’s became Macy’s and after even that store on Fifth Avenue closed will never call the ornate timepiece outside it anything other than the Kaufmann’s clock. After cycling through name after name, the Burgettstown concert venue gave up on people using any of them and went for The Pavilion at Star Lake — a callback to the Star Lake Amphitheater of years ago.
Do your deal, Steelers. Collect your check. The people will call it what they want.
Although “the red zone” is going to have a much different meaning when owned by a finance company than a ketchup maker.
