CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns Stadium can now officially be called Huntington Bank Field.
During a special meeting on Wednesday, Cleveland City Council gave its formal approval to the name change which comes after the Browns and Huntington Bank announced a new 20-year partnership agreement a day earlier.
However, the vote was not unanimous. Councilman Michael Polensek was the lone dissenter as he objected to the fact that the council was not told about the name change agreement before it was announced. In addition, Polensek was unhappy with the Browns' unwillingness to disclose the terms of the deal with Huntington Bank.
"They (Browns) should have came to us prior to their grand announcement because it's clearly stated that they have to get the approval of city council before they name anything. And they didn't do that. I'm one of these guys that believes in respect. I'm not going to let anyone disrespect me. They don't do that to me," Polensek told councilmembers during the meeting.
During the meeting, Councilman Brian Kazy asked a Browns representative if he would be willing to tell council the terms of the deal and how much it is worth. Kazy was told that the information is "proprietary."
"This is going to be tens and tens of millions of dollars and no one can tell us what the (terms of) naming rights are? Could we get any for our neighborhoods? At the end of the day, I want to know what we're getting out of this," Polensek added.
Cleveland City Council President Blaine Griffin explained to the rest of the body that the terms of the stadium lease do not require that the Browns to disclose their profits from a naming rights deal.
You can watch Wednesday's special council meeting below.
Huntington Bank Field marks the third different name of the Browns' home, which first opened in 1999. The facility was called "Cleveland Browns Stadium" from 1999-2012. Amid a change in team ownership, the stadium became known in 2013 as "FirstEnergy Stadium" after the Browns agreed to a 17-year, $102 million partnership with Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp.
Controversy over FirstEnergy's partnership with the Browns ensued as a result of the company's involvement in the House Bill 6 bribery scandal, which notably led to criminal convictions for former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and ex-state Republican Party Chair Matt Borges.
The Browns formally announced a mutual agreement to end its stadium naming rights deal with FirstEnergy in April of 2023. The facility again became known as "Cleveland Browns Stadium" and remained so prior to Tuesday's announcement.
The first game in the newly-named Huntington Bank Field will take place on Sunday when the Browns host the Dallas Cowboys in the 2024 regular season opener.