Exec: GSR arena will seek corporate naming-rights partner

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In current renderings, the proposed state-of-the-art arena at the Grand Sierra Resort is called the "Reno Arena."

But when the University of Nevada, Reno men's basketball team opens play in the 10,500-seat palace – hopefully for the 2026-27 season – the arena will probably carry the name of a corporate sponsor, Andrew Diss, the senior vice president and chief strategy officer for Meruelo Gaming, said recently on Nevada Newsmakers.

"We are now calling it the Nevada Arena or the Reno Arena," Diss told host Sam Shad. "Those are placeholders. But you know, we'll probably have a corporate partner. So if you want to name it the Nevada Newsmakers Arena, feel free to make a proposal."

Naming rights – the privilege of putting your corporate name and logo atop professional and collegiate stadiums and arenas – have become significant areas of profit for stadium operators at the pro sports and collegiate level.

Allegiant Airlines, for example pays $25 million annually for the naming rights for the stadium where the Las Vegas Raiders play.

In 2022, Fresno State reached a 10-year, $10 million deal with Valley Children's Healthcare for a naming rights deal for the university's football stadium.

In 2019, Boise State reached a 15-year, $8.4 million deal with ExtraMile Convenience Stores, LLC, to rename its basketball arena. Both Fresno State and Boise State are Nevada's rivals in the Mountain West Conference.

The proposed arena at the Grand Sierra Resort – expected to cost about $400 million – is the cornerstone component in a $1 billion all-private investment plan by Meruelo Gaming to transform the Grand Sierra Resort. Meruelo's plan for the Grand Sierra includes adding an ice rink, parking garage, 800-room hotel tower, aqua golf facility and 300-unit workforce housing complex.

The $1 billion project, which will take about eight years to complete, is the largest private-investment deal in Reno's history, Diss said.

The GSR arena will also be a prime concert venue, Diss said. The arena will be able to hold about 11,000 fans for concerts, he added.

"We will be able to attract any act, except for your Beyonces and Taylor Swifts because they need a football stadium to play in," he said.

The venue will still attract very popular acts, Diss said.

"I think it is a very good carrot (on a stick) when you can tell an entertainer, 'Hey, we have the most state-of-the-art facility of this size in the country," Diss said.

"Mr. Meruelo takes music and entertainment seriously," Diss added. "And so you know that the sound is going to be dialed in and it's going to be a great experience. I'm very excited about that."

The new arena will be able to play host to a wide variety of entertainment, Diss said.

"Everybody knows about Nevada basketball but we will be able to do ice events, too," Diss said. "You name it and we'll be able to host it. This will be a flexible space and we'll be able to accommodate anything. We can do rodeo events, similar to what they do in South Point (Hotel Casino and Spa in Las Vegas)."

The arena will also meet criteria to host first- and second-round games of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, Diss said in earlier interviews.

Alex Meruelo also owns a minor league hockey team, the Tucson Roadrunners, and that team could move to Reno once the arena is complete, according to published reports. Diss, however, gently pushed back on the idea of the "Reno Roadrunners."

"Right now, we are committed to Tucson," Diss said. "We have a great fan base there but who knows what the future holds."

The rent the Nevada basketball program will pay to play at the arena has not been finalized, Diss said. He expects the team to play about 17 games a season there. However, Meruelo Gaming also wants the Wolf Pack to play host to some preseason collegiate basketball tournaments, attracting some of the nation's top teams and their fans to the Grand Sierra Resort property.

"We are not looking to make money off of the university," Diss said. "We want basically, a break-even scenario. We will finalize what the costs are going to be once construction is complete. But where we'll really have our bread and butter is going to be the concerts and other shows."

The current home of the Nevada men's basketball team is Lawlor Events Center, an on-campus venue that is more than 40 years old.

The new arena will have sky boxes for top-paying fans, Diss said. Lawlor had no sky boxes in its design.

"We'll have approximately 25 suites of different sizes," Diss said. "But you're also going to have club seating and low (bowl) seating and all of the club spaces for the food and beverages – if you want to mingle in your little area but also have a view of the concert or the athletic event that's going on."

The Nevada men's basketball team has probably outgrown Lawlor Events Center, Diss said.

"It's great that we were able to establish a partnership with the university because everybody loves Nevada basketball," he said. "And you know, the talent of the team and Coach (Steve) Alford and what he has done with that program, they've really outgrown the facility at Lawlor. I would argue that the Nevada men's basketball team is the premier team at the university and they deserve a premier location to play."