By Ken Reed
Mile High Stadium.
It once was the iconic name of the Denver Broncos’ home for decades.
But when Broncos’ owner Pat Bowlen demanded that the taxpayers of the Denver metro area build him a new sports palace — or else — things got messy.
The taxpayers of the Denver metro area stepped up and provided $364 million of the $475 million stadium cost. But Bowlen wanted more. He negotiated a naming rights deal with the Metropolitan Football Stadium District that would result in a corporate name on the stadium. In an attempt to appease long-time fans who loved the Mile High Stadium name, the new stadium was called Invesco Field at Mile High. Of course, nobody actually called it that. What does “at Mile High” mean anyway?
When Invesco went bust, the naming rights were then sold to Sports Authority and the taxpayers’ stadium was called Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Now Sports Authority is about to go ten toes up and there’s a movement to give Denver fans and taxpayers their stadium back.
“Return the revered, respected, rightful name to The House That Taxpayers Built!” wrote Denver Post sports columnist Woody Paige recently.
Mile High Stadium. Classic. Traditional. And most importantly, what the fans that built the place want.
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
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