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The Philadelphia home of the NBA’s 76ers and NHL’s Flyers is getting a new name.
Beginning in September the sports and entertainment venue in South Philadelphia will be named the Xfinity Mobile Arena, rebranding from the current Wells Fargo Center. The new name will remain through the 2030-2031 season. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
The change was announced on Tuesday by Comcast Spectacor — the division of cable giant Comcast that owns the Flyers and their home arena, among other assets — as well as Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, or HBSE, Josh Harris and David Blitzer’s investment firm that counts the 76ers, NFL’s Washington Commanders, and other sports and entertainment properties in its portfolio.
Comcast will also own the naming rights to a new arena being developed as part of a joint venture with HBSE, which is set to open in the 2031-2032 season.
The current arena, which opened its doors in 1996, last year completed a multiyear $400 million renovation project. As part of the rebranding, the arena will be upgraded with Xfinity Mobile’s Wi-Fi service for fans. Existing Xfinity Mobile customers will automatically join the Wi-Fi network at no extra cost.
The new arena moniker also comes as Comcast has told investors it’s shifting focus to its growing mobile business. Comcast, which sells its cable TV, broadband and other products under the Xfinity brand, launched the mobile business in 2017 and has seen substantial customer growth since then.
Last month Comcast reported that it added 323,000 mobile lines during the first quarter, bringing the total to roughly 8.15 million total Xfinity Mobile lines.
The business has been a bright spot as broadband customer growth has stagnated due to heightened competition in recent years.
Last quarter Comcast executives said they would focus on growing the mobile business, which had previously been seen primarily as a retention tool for broadband customers but is now a source of financial growth in its own right. During its most recent earnings call in April, Comcast executives doubled down on the shifting strategy to build out the business.
Comcast, along with most of its cable peers such as Charter Communications, only offers mobile service to those already in their customer base. The companies have been working to boost their subscriber base, with Charter focusing on various promotional offers and bundles to attract more customers.
Since cable companies have been in the mobile business for less than a decade, building out brand recognition to compete against giants like AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile has been a priority to nab more customers.
Attaching the Xfinity brand to a major sports arena is sure to help elevate the brand.
“Philadelphia is home to the most passionate fans in the country, and that competitive spirit is a perfect complement to the Xfinity Mobile brand,” said Steve Croney, chief operating officer for connectivity and platforms at Comcast, in a release. “Xfinity Mobile is fueled by the largest and fastest WiFi network in America which will give our Philadelphia fans an unrivaled experience at one of Philadelphia’s legendary sports and entertainment venues.”
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.
