So much for ‘the Arena.’ Miami-Dade County tries again for Miami Heat’s arena name
The Miami Heat’s era in “the Arena” didn’t last long. Two days after announcing the former FTX Arena would be called just “the Arena” for now, Miami-Dade County on Friday announced another temporary name for the county-owned facility.
The bayside home of the Heat will be called the “Miami-Dade Arena.”
READ MORE: Miami Heat’s FTX Arena no more: Judge strikes county deal with bankrupt crypto company
The Heat and Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced what will be the Heat arena’s fourth name in 22 years, and its third name in one week.
On Wednesday, a federal bankruptcy judge granted the county’s request to terminate the 2021 naming-rights agreement with FTX, the once high-flying crypto exchange that collapsed in November as its now ex-CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, faced criminal fraud charges for alleged improper spending of customers’ investment dollars. Hours after the judge’s decision, Levine Cava’s office said the arena would be called “the Arena.”
It didn’t seem to catch on. The new name’s capital A wasn’t used in a joint statement the county released with the Heat the next day saying they would “work aggressively to identify a new naming rights partner for the arena.”
In Friday’s statement, the county and the team said that while the “FTX Arena” name is dead, the company’s logo will likely be around for a while longer. “The removal of the facility’s existing signage and the changeover of branding elements will be ongoing in the coming weeks,” the statement read.
This story was originally published January 13, 2023 at 5:32 PM.