Minnesota Wild Arena Renamed

This offseason is a pivotal one for the Minnesota Wild as they finally have money to spend. With the Ryan Suter and Zach Parise contracts off the books general manager Bill Guerin has some room to operate.

The biggest possible splash for Minnesota is to lock up superstar Kirill Kaprizov for years to come. A contract extension is going to be expensive, and it may have him as the highest paid player in the league.

When Kaprizov and his teammates take the ice next season, they’ll do so at the same arena, but with a new name.

Grand Casino Arena is MN Wild’s new home

Since the Minnesota Wild first dropped the puck 25 years ago fans have been flooding into the Xcel Energy Center. The arena quickly became known as “The X” and now it will take fans time to adjust if they do at all.

Naming rights are all about money. The Minnesota Wild’s contract with Xcel Energy came to a close. There was a possibility the company would renegotiate, but it seemed likely that both sides were set to move on. With Grand Casino stepping in, the Wild have a new primary sponsor and an influx of negotiated cash.

Previous reports had Securian Financial as a potential suitor. That may have worked towards fans adopting an easier moniker with the arena simply going as the Securian Center. Grand Casino Arena is probably going to take a bit longer to catch on.

“Grand Casino Arena will serve as the anchor of a dynamic entertainment district that transforms downtown Saint Paul,The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe has been a strong supporter of and investor in this city. We are thrilled for their partnership and support of the arena.”

Craig Leipold – Minnesota Wild

The new naming rights partnership is a 14-year deal that begins on September 3, 2025. All signage throughout the arena will be replaced to reflect the change. Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press has the figures on the new deal and they are significant.

“Xcel Energy Center’s naming rights were worth $3 million a year to the Wild. Grand Casino naming rights are believed to be worth at least $10 million annually.”

Charley Walters – Pioneer Press

With the Minnesota Wild choosing a gaming sponsor for their naming rights, you can only envision an increased level of visibility when it comes to gambling. The sports world has already embraced betting. It’s only logical that we’ll continue to see more gambling-based partnerships in the future.