Desert Diamond Casino signs naming rights for Glendale arena

August 25, 2022

Desert Diamond Casino has signed a 10-year naming deal with one of Arizona's largest concert venue operators, ASM Global. Officials of both establishments announced the deal earlier this week on Tuesday. The deal will allow the casino to rename the arena Desert Diamond Arena from Gila River Arena.

ASM Global owned the 18,000-seat arena, the former home to the NHL franchise, the Phoenix Coyotes. Located in the bustling and crowd-rich Westgate Entertainment District, the arena is close to the NFL's Arizona Cardinals' home turf State Farm Stadium. The financial information of the deal, however, is still not disclosed.

"Desert Diamond Casinos has always been committed to building a successful West Valley community with diverse entertainment options," Tohono O'odham Gaming Enterprise CEO Mike Bean saidβ€”Tohono O'odham owns Desert Diamond.

ASM Global's CCO Jason Oberlander shared the partnership is more than just renaming the arena. Instead, both parties may benefit from it as they continue to leverage Westgate Entertainment District.

"This is about much more than changing the name of the arena. Strengthening our relationship with Desert Diamond Casinos through this new agreement will allow us to go further than ever before in delivering the highest level of entertainment experiences to our guests," Oberlander said.

"With the City of Glendale, this partnership is more than the sum of its parts and we are excited to move forward with this new opportunity."

More on naming rights, opportunities

The naming rights came about three years after Desert Diamond had launched its flagship casino, the West Valley casino in Glendale, just less than a mile away from the now Desert Diamond Arena. Bean admitted the casino had made double the number of visitors compared to two other Desert Diamond establishments in Tucson. He added that the arena would bring a boost to the flagship casino.

"It just made sense to connect our capabilities with our neighbors at ASM Global and the City of Glendale so we can deliver the best possible experience for all of our guests," Bean continued.

"We appreciate the vision of Glendale leaders in establishing a thriving sports and entertainment district where all of us can succeed together."

Before Desert Diamond, the arena partnered with online recruiting company Jobbing.com in 2006 via a 10-year deal, followed by the Gila River Indian Community eight years later.

As cited previously, the arena was home to the Coyotes, who are now staying at Arizona State University's 5,000-seat venue until 2025. The franchise relocated this year when the city refused to renew its lease.

Regardless, Bean appears optimistic about the decision, although the team is no longer posted on the arena.

"We believe with the Coyotes having vacated the arena, we will be able to have even more entertainment there than previously. "The goal is to provide and bring more entertainment to the arena and that will bring more people (to the casino)," Bean explained.

In the future, Bean revealed the company saw "many synergies and opportunities" with the venue and its surrounding area, as he was likely referring to more concerts or other sporting-related events now that the Coyotes have left.

Jake
Jake Williams
Jake Williams is a sports gambling expert. He's been writing in the sports betting and DFS industry for over a decade. He specializes in MLB and NBA, along with College Basketball and College Football.