Kentucky eyes Memorial Coliseum naming rights, uniform patches in revenue push

As part of its efforts to generate revenue in the new era of college sports, the University of Kentucky is exploring selling the naming rights to one of its flagship venues. According to Jon Hale, JMI Sports President Paul Archey said at the Champions Blue LLC Board of Governors meeting last week that Memorial Coliseum is one of seven unsold assets the school is shopping for naming-rights deals on.

Memorial Coliseum is home to Kentucky Women’s Basketball, Volleyball, Gymnastics, and STUNT, and recently underwent an $82 million renovation. The building opened in 1950 and was also home to the men’s basketball team before Rupp Arena opened in 1976. It was named in honor of the more than 9,000 servicemen and women from Kentucky who died in World War II and also honors those who have fallen in the Korean War, Vietnam War, and subsequent military service. 

Selling the naming rights to a building with such meaning and history is tricky; however, Jacob Most, UK’s director of strategic communications, brand and content, told the Herald-Leader that the name “Historic Memorial Coliseum” will likely remain intact, with the corporate sponsor added at the end after “presented by” or “preserved by.” So, more along the lines of Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center than the total naming rights change from Commonwealth Stadium to Kroger Field.

“To be clear, we are not considering removing the Memorial designation from the building,” Most said. “In fact, we believe the meaning and history behind Memorial Coliseum add value for any potential partner that wants to be associated with a place that honors service, tradition and community.”

The other unsold assets that JMI Sports is searching for naming rights deals for: its downtown studio outside Rupp Arena; advertising for the LED screen behind home plate at Kentucky Proud Park; the Longship Club at Kroger Field; UK’s Esports Lounge; advertising for the end zone LED boards at Kroger Field; and sponsors for uniform patches next season. The latter is made possible by the NCAA’s decision in January to allow schools to sell advertising on up to two uniform patches (no larger than four square inches) for regular-season games. Schools can also sell advertising on football helmets.

UK will have final approval on all naming rights, as per the terms of its extended deal with JMI Sports, which gives the school 80% of all revenue from advertising and other inventory sales over the next 15 years. Archey estimated that these deals could bring in between $3 and $5 million to the department.

These moves can be painful for college sports purists, but, given the current climate, are inevitable. In the first year of the House Settlement (2025-26), schools could share up to $20.5 million with their athletes. That cap increases by 4% annually for the first three years, so to $21.3 million for the 2026-27 school year. Kentucky is actively chasing revenue across all channels, from big capital projects like an entertainment district on campus and more premium spaces at Kroger Field, to smaller ones like naming rights and uniform patches. The best that we can hope for is that the changes that are made are tasteful.

You can read more about the potential naming rights deals and uniform patches over at the Herald-Leader.