Paolo Banchero cuts the ceremonial ribbon as the Magic’s arena officially becomes the Kia center before Wednesday night’s game.
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Orlando Magic rebranded their arena as Kia Center on Wednesday, a change that ends the building’s 13-year run of being known as Amway Center.
The transition to the new name has been underway for some time; by the unveiling Wednesday morning, the Kia logo was already in place on one of the banners that hangs over the court, plus on the basket stanchions. Security workers had new vests with the logo and employees were being given new swipe access cards with the building’s new name.
Terms of the new naming rights deal were not disclosed; the deal with Amway, when originally announced, was worth about $4 million per year. The first event under the new name is a game between the Magic and Miami Heat on Wednesday night.
“The Orlando Magic and Kia America have been proud partners for several years and we share in the excitement of Kia’s success and growth,” Magic CEO Alex Martins said. “We look forward to our expanded partnership which allows Kia to drive its brand forward and deliver a direct, impactful message to our fan base and beyond using the power of the NBA.”
Kia and the NBA have partnered for decades. The automaker is the presenting sponsor of several league awards, has deals with at least 13 different franchises — the one with the Magic has been in place for about 15 years — and helped provide an iconic moment when Blake Griffin jumped over a Kia during the dunk contest at the 2011 All-Star weekend.
Amway has had obvious ties with the Magic since the team’s inception. The team was originally owned by Richard DeVos, one of Amway’s co-founders. DeVos died in 2018; his family still owns and controls the NBA team.
