Kauffman Stadium could soon get new name

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Sources tell NBC Action News the Royals have sold the naming rights to Kauffman Stadium, but in a statement sent to media Monday, the team denied they have reached a deal.

"Since the renovations were completed prior to the 2009 season, our organization has been open to listening to proposals with regards to a naming rights partner,” the unattributed statement reads, “but at this time no agreement has come to fruition.”

On Sunday, sources close to the Royals exclusively told NBC Action News the Royals had reached a deal and a corporate name would either replace or be added to Kauffman Stadium.

The Royals and Chiefs have both been looking for a company to buy their naming rights since.

When it is announced, the sources said, it is expected to be a deal with the Royals that will last the next 21 years, until the end of the current lease.

Why now? Next year's All Star Game.

It is a highly lucrative, week-long professional baseball event that would give the new name enormous exposure.

It is an event that is estimated to shell out a $45 to $60 million economic impact.

The Royals deal is estimated to bring in anywhere from $3 to $6 million a year.

Sources say according to the lease, half of the money will go to the Royals and half will go back to the Jackson County taxpayers to pay for stadium maintenance.

Sources close to the Royals say the corporation is a bank but they would not confirm which one.

However, it is worth noting that the chairman of the board of Arkansas-based Arvest Bank is the son of the late Sam Walton of the Walmart family.

Royals owner David Glass is the former CEO of Walmart.

The full Royals statement is below:

“Amid a variety of reports that the Royals were nearing an announcement today, we felt it necessary to address the situation. Since the renovations were completed prior to the 2009 season, our organization has been open to listening to proposals with regards to a naming rights partner, but at this time no agreement has come to fruition. With that said, there is nothing else to comment on regarding naming rights.”