Features

Commerzbank-Arena to become Deutsche Bank Park

Deutsche Bank will replace fellow German financial services company Commerzbank as the stadium naming rights partner of Bundesliga football club Eintracht Frankfurt, it was announced today (Wednesday).

Deutsche Bank, an existing partner of Eintracht, has agreed a seven-year contract, with an option to extend, that will run through to at least June 30, 2027. Under the deal, the stadium will be renamed Deutsche Bank Park from its current moniker of Commerzbank-Arena in the summer. Both partners have agreed to keep the annual financial terms confidential.

Deutsche Bank said the partnership will go beyond sports sponsorship activities and naming rights. The two parties will explore new business models and products that “transcend the stadium experience of today and make their way into people’s everyday lives”. Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the two parties said they will jointly disclose the details of the partnership and the concept for Deutsche Bank Park in due course.

In March 2015, Commerzbank agreed a five-year extension to its naming rights deal for the home of Eintracht, along with signing new terms for its partnership with the club. The existing contract was due to expire in 2016, but was extended through to June 30, 2020. Commerzbank has partnered with Eintracht since the 2002-03 season, but the association is now set to come to a close.

Deutsche Bank entered into a partnership with Eintracht back in December 2017. That agreement was set to run through to the end of the current 2019-20 season, with the company serving as a premium partner of the team and working with the club to develop new digital-business models.

Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank, which are both based in Frankfurt, Germany’s financial hub, last year ended talks over a potential merger. Deutsche Bank is currently engaged in a strategic overhaul after years of losses, focusing more on its European and German markets.

In November, Eintracht revealed plans to expand Commerzbank-Arena to a capacity of around 60,000 as part of an agreement to become the operator of its home stadium. Eintracht and the City of Frankfurt, owner of the Commerzbank-Arena, agreed on the key terms for the future use and development of the stadium from July 1, 2020.

Commerzbank-Arena first opened in 1925 and has since undergone several renovations, most recently ahead of its status as a venue for Germany’s staging of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. It currently has a capacity of 51,500 for football matches and the City has committed to expand this to around 60,000 seats by the 2023-24 season at the latest.