The Cardinals have spent the last couple of years and a significant amount of money upgrading various parts of the stadium they call home.
Perhaps it’s only fitting that it finally got a new name too.
It was announced Tuesday that the Cardinals will now play in State Farm Stadium, as the team and insurance company entered into an 18-year agreement.
“It’s a remarkable day in a remarkable building,” Cardinals president Michael Bidwill said.
Indeed, emcee Dave Pasch ran down the list Tuesday of all the notable sporting events that have taken place in the stadium the Cardinals call home – and the sporting events still to come in the future – and it was noted multiple times by Pasch and Bidwill that according to multiple studies, events in the building had generated a $4 billion impact on the economy since opening in 2006.
It was announced last year naming rights would be changing. The University of Phoenix had been the name on the building since the stadium’s opening year of 2006. Bidwill said it had been a “great relationship” with University of Phoenix, and added that it would remain the education partner with the team.
“This takes away the question of who will be the naming rights partner, and we couldn’t be more pleased with State Farm,” Bidwill said.
Bidwill declined to reveal how much State Farm was paying for the rights, citing a confidentiality agreement.
State Farm has been a partner with the Cardinals for more than a decade, but Bidwill said conversations about naming rights to the stadium seriously began in the spring. Pro Bowl wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald shared the stage during the press conference, and Bidwill said Fitzgerald’s aunt was a State Farm agent back in Minnesota – and that Fitzgerald holds insurance policies through State Farm.
There was also much talk about work in the community with which the team and the company want to collaborate. The Phoenix area is one of three regional hubs for State Farm.
“The things in front of us are just limitless, what we can accomplish with this partnership,” State Farm chairman and CEO Michael Tipsord said.
The Cardinals have sold out every game they have played since moving to State Farm Stadium – 126 straight heading into 2018’s regular-season opener against Washington. The building hosts the Fiesta Bowl each year, will host the Super Bowl in 2023 and the Final Four in 2024. It has previously been the site of two Super Bowls, a Final Four and three national championship football games.
