Miami-Dade County and the Miami Heat are ending their arena naming rights deal with bankrupt cryptocurrency firm FTX.
The county, which owns the arena, signed a 19-year, $135 million deal for the bayfront Heat homecourt’s name in 2021. After an initial balloon payment of $14 million, FTX was scheduled to make a $5.5 million payment in January.
The arena will still technically be referred to as FTX Arena for Saturday’s game between the Heat and Charlotte Hornets, but signage and the name will soon come down.
“The reports about FTX and its affiliates are extremely disappointing,” the county and team said in a joint statement. “Miami-Dade County and the Miami HEAT are immediately taking action to terminate our business relationships with FTX. We will be working together to find a new naming rights partner for the arena.”
