• by Brandon Miller , July 22, 2008

Time to head for Pink Taco Stadium. Okay, so Pink Taco Stadium doesn't really exist. But it could have. In 2006, the owners of the Hard Rock Café made a bid to name what is now the University of Phoenix Stadium after their new restaurant, Pink Taco. But it turns out that slang references to ladies' nether regions aren't very family-friendly. Don't assume, however, that G-rated stadium names sound any less ridiculous: Dick's Sporting Goods Park, FedEx Field, Comerica Park, Network Associates Coliseum and Jobing.com Arena. But perhaps the Jenny Craig Pavilion at the University of San Diego takes the cake. And by cake, we mean celery sticks and a handful of raisins.

Izod Center
Formerly known as the Continental Airlines Arena, the Izod Center is the East Rutherford home of the New Jersey Nets. When the Devils, New Jersey's NHL team, abandoned the complex for the Prudential Center in Newark in October 2007 and the Nets announced the team's intention to move to Brooklyn, Continental opted not to continue its affiliation, stating that the absence of major league sports in the arena did not align with its marketing goals. After a bidding war, which included Rocawear and Southpole, Izod emerged the victor with a five-year deal at only
$1.4 million a year. Southpole offered $2.1 million, but Izod's promise of a hefty marketing and advertising support and benefits like Izod uniforms for arena employees sealed the deal.

Minute Maid Park
In 2000, the Houston Astros opened the doors of its new stadium: Enron Field. Cut to Enron's fiscal fiasco and public disgrace in December 2001 - good-bye, naming rights. For a two-month period in early 2002, the stadium was known simply as Astros Field. The Astros' owner, Drayton McLane, bought out the 30-year, $100 million deal in February 2002, and in June of that year, Minute Maid signed a 28-year deal with the park. According to ESPN, the company pays a cool $6 million annually to have the stadium named for it, and for other perks, like pouring rights for parent company Coca-Cola.

Citi Field
With a 20-year agreement worth more than $20 million annually, the partnership between the New York Mets and Citigroup is the largest stadium sponsorship deal in United States history and includes obligation for the Citigroup to buy time on SNY, the Mets' cable network. The stadium is slated to be completed in time for the 2009 baseball season, and the deal includes an option to extend it an additional 15 years. Why wasn't the stadium named in tribute to Jackie Robinson as many suggested? Fred Wilpon, principal Mets owner, told The New York Times in 2006: "With the economics that go along with building a stadium like this, it is imperative that we receive revenues." The color barrier is green.