One of the first pieces of news I got after the Champions League final was that the board had decided to expand the stadium by more than 11,000 seats.
In other words, our not-even-one-year-old arena is about to have its seating capacity increased by almost 40%. This is huge news, and it only heightens the importance of finding a good name for the place. And thus, to the contest results.
First, thanks to everyone who wrote in with an entry, whether by email or in the comments. There were a lot of great suggestions, which could be divided into a few different categories:
But you know what? I can’t resist Naming Rights Park. Part of me wants to go with Dante, but even more of me loves the idea of thumbing our noses at corporate sponsorship while creating a giant in-joke for the entire town of Vercelli. What finally settled it was the ease with which I could hear Derek Rae saying, “Live tonight from Naming Rights Park, on the beautiful Via Dante Alighieri.” Plus, I see no reason why we can’t still call the visitor’s locker room “the Inferno.”
So Naming Rights Park it is. If we need a game-world explanation, let’s say people in Vercelli started using the name as a joke when the first architects’ drawings of the new stadium included a giant “Naming Rights” on the roof (not that that would ever happen in real life, of course), and then a group of like-minded fans opposed to the corporate takeover of soccer banded together on the internet, raised some money, and actually bought the naming rights and went with that name. We’ve got a 20-year naming rights deal that’s only bringing us €1 million a year, so if we got a couple of rich fans on board, this isn’t even totally unfeasible.
Here we are then: Naming Rights Park, an elegant, modern, soon-to-be-30,000-seat arena in the heart of old Vercelli. Technically, Siobhan was the first person to suggest the name, so she should win the contest. However, since she’s clearly already in charge of the stadium’s fine dining, we’re going to name the ultras’ curva (the north stand) after the first person who didn’t enter the contest over breakfast: Kyle. Who is now the official capo of the Curva di Kyle.
Congratulations, Kyle. Just remember: Our tifos had better put those jokers from the rest of Italy to shame. We’re still undefeated for all time at the Naming Rights, and we’re going to need all kinds of atmosphere to keep it that way.
Read More: Football Manager 2009, Pixel Dramas, Pro Vercelli
by Brian Phillips · June 19, 2009
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The Arby’s Roastburger Palladium was a distant third, eh?
Sadly, Arby’s wouldn’t agree to some of my demands involving a lifetime supply of curly fries. Regular fries was as far as they would go.
“No deal,” I said between clenched teeth. And as those men left the meeting room that day, there was hatred in my heart.
The weirdest part is that I don’t even like Arby’s curly fries.
I do hope this doesn’t mean the ultras at the San Siro will start singing that song about Kyle’s Mom.
I hope its a grows on me, not a big fan of the new name if im honest. It just doesn’t seem very real life to me and sometimes I like to imagine that this is a real-life blog, albeit in an alternate universe 😉
I assure you, Naming Rights Park is very real, and your skepticism is an insult to the fans who donated their hard-earned money online to create this momument to anti-corporate sentiment.
How do you say “Naming Rights Park” in Italian? Which language will it go by? Will it have a nickname – or maybe that will come with time?
“Walter read the news, buried on page 6 of the Gazetta Dello Sport. He drank deeply from his brown bagged bottle of Sambuca, and wept.”
Can you at least hire Colombo as a janitor? I mean come on, now you are just being cruel.
No, but I’m definitely thinking about bringing his sons in for the reserve team.
I hate corporations, that is why I refuse to buy Microsoft Windows and instead do everything by DOS. I also steal my internet, just to stick it to Comcast
I don’t hate corporations (at least not automatically), but I do, seriously, hate corporate sponsorship in sports. Or at least, I understand why it’s become widespread, and I’m not steeped in bitterness over it, but all that said, it just makes things slightly worse.
But it needs to be “Naming Rights Park” in Italian. Can’t be English. It lacks teh proper flavor, like Budweiser.
So, in Italian … “Parco Nome Diritti”