NBA Arenas Play Name Game: Utah Gains Delta, Miami Removes FTX Signage
Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 06:19PM By Barry Janoff
January 14, 2023: Delta Airlines has signed a long-term deal for naming rights to the home venue for the NBA’s Utah Jazz, which will return to its Delta Center name beginning July 2023 to coincide with the Jazz celebrating their 50th NBA season.
The venue was known as the Delta Center from its opening in 1991 through 2006. It was EnergySolutions Arena from 2006-15
Vivint acquired naming rights in 2015. The upcoming NBA All-Star Game and events will be played in the venue.
Separately, the Miami Heat and Miami-Dade County said “until such time as there is a new naming rights partner, to refer to the arena as Miami-Dade Arena. The removal of the facility’s existing signage (FTX) and the changeover of branding elements will be ongoing in the coming weeks."
Delta will will also become the “official airline of the Utah Jazz, adding to its current role as an “official community partner.
The Jazz said Delta would also have “numerous sponsorship and branding rights with the team, including media, hospitality and employee engagement extensions.”
“I have so many amazing memories of the Delta Center as a kid, and I know that countless people throughout Utah and beyond had similar experiences creating core memories there, whether watching the Olympics & Paralympic Winter Games, the NBA Finals, concerts, or other incredible events,” Ryan Smith, owner of the Utah Jazz and chairman of Smith Entertainment Group, said via the team.
“We are excited to partner with Ed Bastian and the entire Delta team to not only bring back the arena’s original name, but also leverage the amazing work Delta is doing to provide incredible experiences for the people of our state and help show the world how amazing Utah is.”
According to the Heat and Miami-Dade County, “When the news first broke about FTX several weeks ago, Miami-Dade County took immediate legal action to terminate our business relationship with FTX.
"On Jan. 11, our motion to lift the automatic stay of the FTX’s bankruptcy proceedings to terminate the original naming rights agreement in its entirety was approved. Miami-Dade County and the Miami Heat will now work aggressively to identify a new naming rights partner for the arena.”
The 
Heat deal, signed in June 2021 and initiated this season, was valued at $135 million over 19 years, according to industry analysts.
The cryptocurrency exchange — which had deals that included the Heat, Golden State Warriors, Mercedes-Benz F1, MLB, eSports TMS and numerous athletes — in November said it had filed for bankruptcy and that founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried had resigned.
The moves come on the heels of Delaware North, owner and operator of TD Garden — home for the NBA’s Boston Celtics and NHL Bruins — together with the venue's naming rights partner, TD Bank, signing a 20-year naming rights extension that maintains the arena name as TD Garden through 2045.
TD Bank has been the exclusive naming rights partner of the arena since July 1, 2005.
TD Garden, Home To Boston Celtics, Bruins, Signs 20-Year Naming Rights Extension
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