Sports Illustrated has secured a 13-year naming rights agreement for the New York Red Bulls' stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, ending Red Bull's 16-year run as the venue's primary branding tenant. The deal was announced Tuesday. Financial terms were not disclosed, but comparable MLS stadium naming agreements in secondary markets run $2 million to $4 million annually. Red Bull retains full ownership of the team and the 25,000-seat facility opened in 2010.
The structure is rare. Red Bull is landlord, operator, and majority shareholder of the club, but will now collect naming rights fees from a media brand instead of using its own global trademark on the building. The company spent roughly $200 million building the stadium and has operated it as a captive marketing asset for the beverage. SI's parent company, Minute Media, acquired the brand's licensing rights in 2019 after Meredith Corporation shuttered the print operation. Minute Media has been aggressively expanding into venue partnerships, events, and licensing—this is its first stadium naming rights deal.
For Red Bull, the calculus shifted. The energy drink's brand recognition in the New York metro is entrenched after 17 years of team ownership and consistent playoff appearances. The marginal value of stadium signage diminishes when the club itself carries the name. Monetizing the facade allows Red Bull to convert a cost center into revenue while maintaining operational control and team branding. The company's North American headquarters is 12 miles west in Santa Monica, California; its soccer properties span five clubs globally, including RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg. None of the other clubs rent out their stadium names.
Sports Illustrated's move is a bid for physical presence in a media environment where digital distribution has commodified editorial. Minute Media generates revenue primarily through programmatic ads and licensing deals; a stadium naming package offers brand visibility to 400,000-plus annual attendees and regional broadcast audiences. The company has been testing experiential plays, including SI-branded sportsbooks and a hotel partnership in Alabama. The Red Bull Arena deal gives SI a New York-area anchor for potential event programming, sponsor integrations, and content studios embedded in the venue.
MLS stadium naming rights deals have historically underperformed compared to NFL or NBA equivalents, but the category is firming. Cincinnati's TQL Stadium signed a $1.5 million annual deal in 2021; Nashville's Geodis Park came in near $2.5 million in 2022. Red Bull Arena's proximity to Manhattan and its role as a secondary concert venue—recent acts included Bad Bunny and Coldplay—likely pushed the valuation higher. SI's agreement includes signage, digital media, and venue activation rights. Red Bull will continue as the club's primary kit sponsor under a separate arrangement.
The league will watch this closely. If a media brand can extract measurable ROI from stadium naming in a saturated market like New York, other MLS clubs may begin pitching their facilities to digital publishers, streaming platforms, or sports betting operators looking for physical distribution. Red Bull's willingness to step back from its own stadium name suggests the company sees greater value in portfolio diversification than in redundant branding. SI's willingness to pay for it suggests Minute Media is betting that venue access is the next leverage point for digital media brands trying to own audience rather than rent it.
The deal begins with the 2025 MLS season opener in late February. SI branding will debut across stadium signage, broadcast backdrops, and team communications. Red Bull has not disclosed whether it will pursue similar agreements at its other soccer properties. Minute Media has not disclosed whether it will pursue additional stadium deals in other markets, but the company's leadership team has been meeting with venue operators in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Austin in recent months.
The takeaway
Red Bull monetizes its own stadium facade, SI buys physical presence—watch for more digital publishers to chase venue naming deals.
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