By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
April 26, 2013
In all my years in the sports business, here’s something I’ve never seen before. Lucas Oil CEO Forrest Lucas, whose company’s name adorns the NFL stadium in Indianapolis, is upset with the lack of primetime home games on the Colts’ 2013 schedule. Lucas is particularly unhappy that of the Colts’ six primetime games this season, only one is in Indianapolis. That certainly won’t help Lucas Oil capitalize on exposure opportunities on the West Coast.
Lucas Oil pays $6 million annually for naming rights to the Colts’ stadium. Unfortunately for Lucas, part of the risk in buying naming rights is having no control over scheduling. This is the first time the CEO of a company with stadium naming rights has publicly complained about the team’s schedule, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the last.
