Guys, brace yourselves: The L.A. Memorial Coliseum at the University of Southern California may be set to become the United Airlines Memorial Coliseum. The P.R.-challenged airline has put together a naming rights deal with the university worth $70 million over 15 years, Sports Business Daily reports. That would make this the single biggest naming rights deal in the history of college sports.
Coliseum owners have been shopping around for a naming rights deal to bring in an influx of cash to help fund extensive renovations to the 96-year-old sports stadium, which have been in the works since 2015. The total budget for the overhaul is expected to be $270 million and they have stated that the goal is to have all the work completed in time for the opening of the 2019 football season.
Part of the rush to complete the work may come from another announcement out this week that construction on the new Inglewood stadium for the Los Angeles Rams has been delayed by at least one year, meaning the NFL team will continue to play at the Coliseum for an additional season. The Rams stadium is now set to open in summer of 2020 (and to play host to the Super Bowl in January of 2021).
The L.A. Memorial Coliseum, so named in memorial of veterans of World War I, is currently the home court for USC’s own sports teams, as well as the Rams. The Exposition Park venue served as an important site for both the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games. Exactly what the new name might be has not been announced, but word is that "Memorial" will stay in the name, no matter what.
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