NRG Stadium after 12 years is “reverting to its original name: Reliant Stadium,” according to Matt Young of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. The change was approved Wednesday by the Harris County Sports & Convention Corporation. Reliant Energy bought the 30-year naming rights for the stadium and surrounding buildings in 2002 for $300M. NRG Energy purchased Reliant’s retail electricity business in 2009 and opted to change the name in 2014 to reflect the brand of the parent company. But the company “now has decided to go back to using the Reliant branding on the stadium,” though there are no changes with the business -- Reliant is still a subsidiary of NRG Energy. According to NRG, a recent survey revealed that 90% of their Houston-based customers “supported the return of the stadium’s original name.” Although the decision was “made solely by NRG,” which owns the naming rights to the stadium through 2032, the “timing works out for the Texans, who have events planned to celebrate their 25th season in the NFL.” Besides being connected to the Texans’ 25th season, the timing also is “logistically perfect,” as “all stadium signage bearing the moniker NRG Stadium had to be taken down this month” in preparation for the World Cup (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 4/15).
NRG Stadium returning to original Reliant Stadium name
