Maryland athletics announced State Employees’ Credit Union will sponsor the naming rights to Maryland Stadium Friday, according to a release from the department.
The facility previously known as Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium will be renamed to SECU Stadium, with the new name debuting Oct. 1 during Maryland football’s Big Ten home opener against Michigan State, per the release.
The agreement is for 10 years, athletic director Damon Evans said.
SECU will pay Maryland athletics a guaranteed $11 million and become its official banking partner, according to the release. The agreement includes $2.5 million that will support programs and facilities, such as the construction of the Barry P. Gossett Basketball Performance Center. Evans said the other revenue will go into the operating budget.
The agreement also features additional compensation Maryland athletics estimates will earn it about $300,000 to $400,000 annually, taking the total value of the deal to about $14 million to $15 million over the 10-year period, Evans said.
“That revenue will go to support our student athletes and our operating budget and our coaches and our programs,” Evans told The Diamondback.
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Capital One and Maryland athletics mutually agreed to terminate its previous arrangement, according to the release, allowing a new stadium naming rights agreement. Chevy Chase signed its deal with Maryland Athletics in 2006, and the field was renamed in 2009 after Capital One acquired Chevy Chase.
Evans said the athletic department will continue some sort of partnership with Capital One.
The new branding will be the first time the stadium name is sponsored. The previous agreement featured sponsorship of the field, initially being named Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium in 2006. The Byrd Stadium name was removed in 2015 after holding the title since its construction in 1950.
Maryland athletics worked with Oak View Group to broker a naming rights deal. Dan Shell, who worked on the deal at OVG but has since moved to become a senior vice president at United Talent Agency, said there were other offers, but SECU represented the best option.
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“[SECU] is going to provide financial literacy opportunities to not just student athletes but all students,” Shell told The Diamondback. “That’s one of the more unique aspects of this deal.”
Evans said those financial wellness and literacy programs will also be available to staff and faculty. Maryland athletics will also partner with SECU’s Kindness Campaign, a project designed to inspire acts of service throughout communities, according to the release.
“We wanted a partner that wasn’t going to be just about Maryland athletics, but could help out this institution or university as a whole and do things to engage our community,” Evans said.
