Bridgeview Stadium Gets New Name Sponsor

One of the Chicago Fire’s lingering off-the-pitch issues was the lack of a stadium sponsor. The stadium name deal with Toyota expired in 2016, leaving the Fire and the Village of Bridgeview without a major revenue stream. The “Toyota Park” branding remained, and we all still call it Toyota Park, but it essentially amounted to free advertising for a company that chose not to do business with CFSC/VoB two years ago.

The Village has been courting new stadium name sponsors but the search had been slow-going. Today, finally, a new deal has been announced.

Starting with the 2019 season, the Chicago Fire will play in... SeatGeek Stadium.

SeatGeek, an online event ticket marketplace and a competitor for companies like StubHub, issued a joint statement with the Village of Bridgeview earlier today. In the statement, Bridgeview mayor Steve Landek touted the deal as an exciting long-term investment in the Village.

“We’re thrilled to align ourselves with SeatGeek as our new naming rights partner,” Landek said. “We’re excited about SeatGeek making a meaningful and long-term investment in the stadium and our community.”

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, although given the Village’s extensive debt (much of which is tied up in the stadium) any revenue is likely seen as welcome reprieve. The joint statement also referenced some new development around the stadium, including a new Hampton Inn hotel and a mixed-use retail center.

John Urban, recently-named COO of the Chicago Fire, also praised the new sponsorship arrangement.

“Throughout the years our Club - and most importantly our fans - have helped create memorable moments at this stadium,” Urban said. “We look forward to having SeatGeek add to our home-field advantage.”