The connection between government contractors and the Nationals is "so strong that the team explored a sponsorship concept that would have rechristened" the ballpark "Freedom Park" under two "nontraditional naming-rights scenarios," according to Robert Terry of the WASHINGTON BUSINESS JOURNAL. Nationals Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer Valerie Camillo said that the first scenario would have "involved cutting a deal with one company." For instance, "purely hypothetically, it would have been Freedom Park presented by Lockheed Martin." The second idea was "even more nontraditional." Nationals Park would have been "renamed Freedom Park, funded by a coalition of defense and other government contractors aiming to support the military." It "makes sense: The field is only 4 miles from the Pentagon and the region is home not only to the world's largest defense contractor but also other aerospace and defense heavyweights." Camillo said that the latter concept "progressed the most, but the companies involved in discussions couldn't get to the 'full number to bring it to life.'" Camillo acknowledged the "sticking point ... was finding the right ways to recognize those companies from a marketing, signage and storytelling perspective, since their names would not actually be on" the ballpark. Camillo said that the team is "not engaged in active negotiations on either concept right now," but that "doesn't mean the idea is off the table." Camillo also "continues to pursue traditional naming-rights deals" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 7/3).
