Does Citi Field have the same ring as Shea Stadium? Well, it likely depends on who you are. Mets loyalists may grumble. But for the bank, it's a nice, albeit expensive, marketing move. Business Week notes some think that Citigroup could use the $20 million a year the sponsorship cost in other areas right now. But such deals are currently popular among commercial banks. Citi seems to have paid a premium. Bank of America bought the rights to the Carolina Panthers' stadium in Charlotte for $7 million a year. Other banks paid even less. M&T, PNC and Comerica have also bought stadium naming rights. For banks, such deals amount to a low-cost way to burnish their brands with the public and associate with a professional team. I'd like to see how the ROI is actually measured. There's risk on both sides. Recall the Houston Astros got stuck with Enron.  

For more:
- here's the Business Week article