Rose Bowl looks to sell the naming rights to its field, but it won’t be a corporate name

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 02: Fans stand outside the before the 98th Rose Bowl Game between the Oregon Ducks and the Wisconsin Badgers on January 2, 2012 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

For the first time in its history, the field at the Rose Bowl could have a name.

The Rose Bowl Operating Company is reportedly looking for approval Monday for a new name for the field which has played host to countless memorable football and soccer games. What may be a welcome surprise for some is that the field won’t bear the name of a brand or corporation, but rather that of Tod Spieker, a Silicon Valley real estate investor and UCLA alumnus.

Spieker offered to kick in $10 million to start a fundraising campaign that the Rose Bowl Operating Company hopes will raise $40 million for stadium improvements by the time the venue turns 100 years old in 2022. If Pasadena City Council approves the motion, the field would be named ‘Tod Spieker Field at the Rose Bowl,” though broadcasters reportedly would not be required to refer to it this way. The agreement would put Speiker’s name on the field for the next 25 years before it could be up for a change.

What do you think about naming the field at the Rose Bowl? Does it change anything for you that the field will be named after a person rather than a company or brand?

Guest:

Rob Yowell, president of Gemini Sports Group, a marketing firm based in Phoenix, AZ; he has been involved in negotiating a number of naming rights deals including for The Honda Center in Anaheim and Oracle Arena in Oakland