FAU set to approve $22.5 million naming rights deal for on-campus football stadium

Florida Atlantic’s board of trustees is expected to approve a $22.5 million, 15-year deal that would give Flagler Credit Union the naming rights to the school’s football stadium.

The deal — both in terms of total and average value — would be the biggest publicly known naming rights agreement for any school in the American Athletic Conference currently with an on-campus stadium.

The board will hold a special meeting Tuesday with the naming rights item on its agenda, with FAU athletic director Brian White expected to present the plan for approval. FAU’s athletic department has scheduled a news conference for a “significant announcement” following the end of the meeting, without specifying a reason.

If approved, the stadium would be called Flagler Credit Union Stadium. The field will remain named for Howard Schnellenberger, who was FAU’s first coach and the person who essentially built the program from scratch starting in the late 1990s.

It is the second major announcement for FAU football this month. On Dec. 2, the Owls hired Zach Kittley — most recently the Texas Tech offensive coordinator for the last three seasons — as their new head coach, giving him a $6 million, five-year deal.

Part of the sponsorship agreement will also give the credit union some multi-media rights for football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. FAU will cover the first $150,000 of costs related to new signage bearing the stadium’s new name. All additional costs from that point will be split between the school and the sponsor.

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