In a summer of major changes for the Sabres organization one more cosmetic one will occur today. First Niagara will acquire the naming rights to HSBC Arena.
This is a move I suspected would occur in the near future, I just didn’t think it would happen this soon. As First Niagara has continued to grow in recent years I began to wonder if they would look into some sort of branding with the Sabres, Bisons or the Bills. When HSBC sold their retail branches to First Niagara I assumed a name change for the Arena was inevitable. However, all news from the three parties involved appeared to be in the contrary.
Now there is the opportunity for the Arena to be called the First Niagara Arena – or FNA (effin’ a). UPDATE: It appears the name will be the First Niagara Center.
With the additional renovations being made to the interior of the Arena and the locker room, a name change will add that much more of a new look for the new regime. Based on the look of the First Niagara logo, it will look much better on the exterior (and interior signage) of the building. I do wonder if they will utilize the neon waves that were once prevalent on the main exterior sign back in the 90s.
Aside from a trade, it seems as if the next biggest change will come with a new sign on the front of the Arena.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
