Stripchat evidently abides by the classic Wayne Gretzky quote, "You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take," because the adult website company is taking a shot it almost certainly will miss.
Stripchat communications director Max Bennett confirmed to Yahoo! Sports this week that the company will bid up to $15 million for the right to name the iconic Superdome in New Orleans the "Stripchat Superdome." Mercedes-Benz, which won the right to name the Saints' home stadium in 2011, will not renew the deal that expires in 2021.
Bennett emailed Yahoo! Sports a portion of the pitch Stripchat submitted. Simultaneously, it makes a good point about name potential and likely ruins any chances of serious consideration.
"In our opinion, New Orleans is the party capital of the United States," the text begins, truthfully. "It’s always been synonymous with nightlife and entertainment. It comes alive at night, with people wandering the neon-hued promenade of one the most famous nightlife strips in the world — Bourbon Street.”
No lies detected. It continues:
"I’d like to think that we here at Stripchat embody some of New Orleans’ character and flair. As one of the world’s leading adult webcam sites that averages over 60 million visitors per month, we know a thing or two about having a good time."
OK, fine. But then the pitch goes off the rails.
"We have been looking into penetrating the sports world and think this is a wonderful opportunity to do so by announcing a bid of up to $15,000,000 for the naming rights to the Superdome."
As Yahoo! Sports notes, Saints owner Gale Benson is extremely religious and likely would not be amused by this pitch. (The Superdome is owned by the state of Louisiana, but the Saints have the authority to sell the venue's naming rights.) It doesn't help that Benson recently had to release a statement defending the Saints public relations staff's involvement in the release of a list of catholic church clergy members accused of sexual abuse.
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Built in the early 1970s, the Superdome didn't sell its naming rights until Mercedes-Benz purchased them nine years ago, which is part of the reason most still refer to the stadium as simply "The Superdome."
A recent Forbes article that details the appeal the Superdome offers its next naming rights holder also lays out what the Saints might want in return:
"Across multiple conversations, it was obvious the Saints are asking for more than just money for a sign on the stadium," the article states. "The Saints will ask the next naming rights sponsor to collaborate on targeted efforts impacting the Gulf Coast region, with an emphasis on education, innovation, environmental stewardship, world-class recruitment, sustainable initiatives and more."
So no, despite some impressive efforts, the Superdome will not be called the Stripchat Superdome or the Pornodome or anything "synonymous with nightlife and entertainment."