Miller Park has been a fitting name for the home of the Milwaukee Brewers, but that’s set to change in 2021.
Since it opened for games in 2001, the home of the Milwaukee Brewers has been called Miller Park. Miller Brewing was a fitting naming sponsor, given the team’s nickname. But according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, American Family Insurance will take over the naming rights of the ballpark starting with the 2021 season.
American Family is also a Wisconsin-based company, and the No. 1 insurer of homes and vehicles in Wisconsin. So the naming rights for the Brewers’ home is staying with a company that calls the state home, or “in the family” so to speak.
Miller bought the naming rights to Miller Park back in 1996, through the 2020 season, for approximately $40 million and an estimated $2.06 million per year. The Journal-Sentinel cited a 2011 study that placed the “exposure value” of the Brewers’ stadium name at $2.74 million.
The Brewers have set a 2 p.m. press conference on Tuesday, teasing a “major business announcement.” But a statement from MillerCoors has let the cat out of the bag.
American Family Insurance, proactively pitched the Brewers an incredibly rich offer for the future naming rights to Miller Park, and we’re proud to welcome American Family to the family we’ve been part of for generations,
Any concerns, realistic or otherwise, over Miller pulling their products from the set-to-be newly named park can be set aside.
While the name on the stadium will change after the 2020 season, we fully expect Brewers fans inside and outside the stadium will continue to celebrate every home run and every strikeout with one of our beloved brands,” the company said.
After every Brewers’ home run and home victory, mascot “Bernie The Brewer” has taken a trip down the slide in left field. Bernie is also presumably not going away, since Miller Park (American Family Park?) should remain as-is beyond the change of all name-related markings.
Stadium naming rights deals often come down to money, and American Family obviously ponied up as Miller’s deal winds down. There’s two more seasons of the name being officially the same, but it’s safe to say fans will be calling it Miller Park for awhile past that point.