The home of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury is undergoing a light remodel. The city-owned venue formerly known as Footprint Center is managed by the Suns and Mercury, who have begun the search for a new naming rights deal.
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Starting Sunday, the Footprint Center signage at the front of the arena began to come down, and by Tuesday morning, workers were seen removing the final letters from the building.
The original naming rights deal with Footprint, a plant-based engineering company based in Gilbert, was a 10-year pact, but its sponsorship arrangement with the teams has changed. Footprint will continue as official sustainability partner of the Suns and Mercury, but will no longer hold the arena naming rights, according to a statement from a Suns spokesperson.
Club officials indicated that the search for a new naming rights partner will begin immediately, and until a new partner is found, the building will be called PHX Arena.
“We were presented with a unique opportunity to reimagine and strengthen our partnership with Footprint to better align with their mission and commitment to sustainability and innovation,” Stacey Mitch, Phoenix Suns senior vice president of communications and broadcast, said in a statement.
Footprint was announced as the arena’s naming partner in July 2021, during a Suns run to the NBA Finals. Since the long-term contract was signed, the arena has integrated Footprint’s plant-based fiber products, which include disposable cups, plates and other recyclable and compostable material. A Suns and Mercury team representative confirmed these products will continue to be used in the arena.
Player 15 Group, the parent company for the Suns and Mercury, will handle the naming rights negotiations internally. As for when the building will have a new name, a timeline has yet to be announced. When it opened in 1992, the downtown Phoenix venue was named America West Arena followed by US Airways Center, Talking Stick Resort Arena and Footprint. The new partner will be the fifth name sponsor.
The 18,000-seat venue, located on Jefferson Street between Second and Third streets, hosts more than a million visitors yearly for not only basketball games, but concerts, ice shows, private events and other entertainment. Footprint Center hosted the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game and is set to welcome the 2026 Women’s Final Four and 2027 NBA All-Star weekend.
“I expect for us to command significant investment based on the major events that are coming here and that will continue to come here,” Dan Costello, executive vice president and chief revenue officer of the Suns, Mercury and the arena told Sportico. “As long as we have things like All-Star games, tourism and impact from a population growth perspective, this will be a place where brands want to align.”
