Gophers seek naming-rights deal for Williams Arena as the U financial needs grow
The Gophers athletics department is exploring a potential naming-rights deal for Williams Arena and the U will partner with Independent Sports & Entertainment in the process, the U said Thursday.
This is part of the U's efforts to create more revenue streams with the incoming estimated annual expense of $20.5 million in revenue sharing to student-athletes. That's known as the 'House settlement' and it's expected to be finalized this month and start later this year.
The naming-rights for the venue nicknamed The Barn 'is a tremendous opportunity for a company to align themselves with the University of Minnesota and with Gopher Athletics,' Director of Athletics Mark Coyle said in a statement. 'We look forward to working with ISE to find a naming rights partner that will help us continue to provide world-class experiences for our student-athletes.'
For fiscal year 2024, the Gophers reported $151.1 million in total operating revenues and $152.5 million in total operating expenses. The goal for the U is a balanced budget, but it's unclear how the U will carve out funds for this big new expense.
'We've been making hard decisions within our athletics department in terms of some of the things we will do as we move forward to help cover that cost of $20.5 million,' Athletics Director Mark Coyle told reporters on March 14. 'We feel very confident that we will be at that revenue share number. … We feel like we will get there. We feel confident about that and feel like we will give our program the best chance to succeed.'
A naming-rights deal the venue nicknamed 'The Barn' would help shrink the financial gap but not bridge it by itself.
For example, the Gophers and 3M in 2017 entered into a 14-year, $11.2 million sponsorship agreement for naming rights to the home of men's hockey, Mariucci Arena. It's now known as 3M Arena at Mariucci.
During the pandemic, the Gophers cut three men's sports — gymnastics, tennis and track and field — at the end of the 2020-21 academic year. Coyle said a budget shortfall and Title IX compliance were two reasons why cuts were necessary.
The U currently has a combined 22 men's and women's sports and it's unclear if more individual sports teams might cease operations in the near future.
ISE, according to its website, is an agency that works in management, sales, consulting and marketing, with services in strategic guidance, brand creation and global partnerships. They list a handful of clients, including ESPN, the College Football Playoff, the WNBA and college programs such as Mississippi, West Virginia, Vanderbilt and Washington State among others.
Due to the revenue sharing demands, Coyle said in March that the U has set aside a plan to explore remodeling options for Williams Arena. A year ago, the Gophers tabbed Populous, an architectural design firm, to do a feasibility study into building a new venue or possible renovations of the existing arena, which first opened in 1928.
When remodeled in 1950, the home of the men's and women's basketball teams was named Williams Arena after Dr. Henry L. Williams, a former Gophers football coach (1900-21) who did not have deep connections to U basketball.
If the U secures a naming-rights parter, they plan to recognize within the stadium Williams Arena's nearly 100-year-old history and Dr. Williams, a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.
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