ARLINGTON, TEXAS
Daktronics upgrading Rangers Ballpark
Daktronics will design, manufacture and install LED screens throughout Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. More than 1,200 linear feet of full-color, digital LED displays will be installed along the lower suite level fascia, the lower Home Run Porch fascia and the fascia below the Diamond Club in left field.
ATLANTA
Hawks hold line on season-ticket prices
Atlanta Hawks season-ticket holders who renew or add new tickets for the 2009-10 season before April 1 will see their prices remain the same. New season tickets for the 2009-10 season go on sale March 1, and a $250 deposit secures the opportunity to attend a select-a-seat event before that night’s Hawks-Cavaliers game.
BALTIMORE
Ravens boost club seat prices
The Baltimore Ravens are notifying season-ticket holders that the prices of their seats will increase $5 to $15 per ticket for the 2009 season, according to a report in The Baltimore Sun. The biggest bump of $15 is for some club seats and lower-level seating around midfield, according to the report. The Ravens are in the process of completing a $4 million club-level improvement project.
BOSTON
Celtics offer payment plan
The Boston Celtics will not increase season-ticket holder loge and balcony ticket prices for the 2009-10 season. The team will also introduce a 12-month, interest-free payment plan option, allowing season-ticket holders to spread both their 2009 playoffs and 2009-10 season-ticket payments over thenext year.
A-B names Garden club space
Anheuser-Busch is expanding its overall partnership deal with TD Banknorth Garden to include a multiyear naming-rights agreement for the members-only Legends Club. The newly named Budweiser Legends Club pays homage to local sports heroes and is decorated with photos of Boston athletes and memorabilia.
A clear view of the ice will cost ticket
holders 10 percent more next season.
Bruins’ front row increasing to $165
Ticket prices for first-row seats along the glass at Boston Bruins games next season will increase from $150 to $165, while prices will decrease for seats in the four corner loge sections from $89 to $85, according to a report in The Boston Globe. Prices for seats in all other sections will remain the same next season, according to the report.
Ace Ticket aligns with BC, media
Ace Ticket Worldwide signed three major advertising sponsorship deals with New England Sports Network, Boston College Athletics and Comcast SportsNet. Ace Ticket serves as the official “offline” ticket resale agency of the Boston Red Sox and is now the official sponsor of New England Sports Network’s Boston Bruins postgame show, “Ace Ticket Bruins Overtime Live.”
CHICAGO
Bears’ ticket freeze first since 2001
The Chicago Bears will freeze ticket prices for next season, marking the first time since after the 2000 season that the Bears haven’t raised ticket prices, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune. The move means the club will collect less ticket revenue during the 2009 season than in 2008 because the city has raised the amusement tax from 8 percent to 9 percent, according to the report.
COLUMBUS
Jackets barbecue with Montgomery
Columbus Blue Jackets fans will be able to get a taste of the Montgomery Inn at Nationwide Arena starting this month. The Cincinnati-based barbecue restaurant will have four concession stands and a portable cart at the venue. The deal was signed through the team’s concessionaire, Delaware North Cos. Sportservice.
DENVER
Cherry Hills to host 2012 championship
Cherry Hills Country Club in nearby Cherry Hills Village, Colo., was selected as the site for the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship. The dates of the championship will be Aug. 20-26, 2012. In addition, Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colo., will be used for the stroke-play portion of the U.S. Golf Association event.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.
Companies to compete for Nets account
The New Jersey Nets will award a free two-month sponsorship next season to the winner of the Nets Metropolitan Madness Basketball Challenge next month. Sixty-four companies will be allowed to enter the basketball tournament, including 32 Nets partners. Each company that competes will receive 25 complimentary tickets for a Nets game this season, which will include food and beverage hospitality.
LOS ANGELES
Mexican League game scheduled
The Los Angeles Dodgers will host an official Mexican League regular-season game at Dodger Stadium on May 16, according to an MLB.com report. The game is being dubbed La Serie Azul and will feature the league’s top two teams, the Mexico City Diablos Rojos and the Monterrey Sultanes.
AirTran Airways will also hold in-game
promotions and has added
stadium signage.
MILWAUKEE
AirTran sponsoring outfield picnic spot
AirTran Airways signed a multiyear partnership with the Milwaukee Brewers, the centerpiece of which is naming rights to an all-inclusive outfield seating area that has been renamed the AirTran Airways Landing Zone. AirTran Airways will also hold in-game promotions at Brewers home games and has added stadium signs. Mercedes-Benz pulled out of its naming-rights deal for the right-field picnic area at the end of the 2008 season.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL
Wild holds ticket prices steady
The Minnesota Wild is freezing prices for the 2009-10 regular season and the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs. Regular-season prices will continue to range from $18 to $86, while playoff tickets will be priced the same as last postseason. The team has 16,500 season-ticket holders.
Vikings to offer eLayaway option
The Minnesota Vikings signed a deal with eLayaway, a company that administers layaway programs for businesses. The company also has a partnership with the New Orleans Saints. ELayaway automates the layaway process by deducting payments from a bank account until a consumer’s ticket account is paid off.
PHILADELPHIA
Comcast selling AHL Phantoms
Comcast-Spectacor reached an agreement to sell its AHL affiliate, the Philadelphia Phantoms, to the Brooks Group of Pittsburgh, Pa. The Brooks Group owns the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL and has ownership interests in the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Pittsburgh Penguins and three minor league baseball teams. Comcast-Spectacor will continue to operate the Phantoms until the conclusion of the 2008-09 hockey season.
PHOENIX
Lucas Oil, track extend partnership
Phoenix International Raceway extended an existing partnership with Lucas Oil Products for title sponsorship of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races at the track in 2009 and 2010. The green flag will drop on the 2009 Lucas Oil 150 on Nov. 13.
Hungry runners zigzagged from campus
toKrispy Kreme and back and
raised $35,000.
PORTLAND
Blazers plan for playoff tickets early
The Portland Trail Blazers are banking on the team playing in the postseason and will offer playoff tickets to season-ticket holders while simultaneously rolling out 2009-10 season-ticket packages that include a 6.7 percent average price increase. Most of the price increases apply to lower-bowl seats.
RALEIGH
Thousands eat doughnuts on the run
More than 5,500 runners took part in the 5th annual Krispy Kreme Challenge on Feb. 7 in Raleigh. The challenge involves running two miles from N.C. State University to a downtown Raleigh Krispy Kreme shop, consuming a dozen glazed doughnuts and returning to the campus in less than an hour. Almost 48,000 doughnuts were consumed, a total of more than 9 million calories. The student-organized charity event raised $35,000 for the North Carolina Children’s Hospital.
