The Phoenix arena home to Mat Ishbia's basketball teams will promote United Wholesale Mortgage's broker search website for the foreseeable future.
The Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury and UWM Thursday announced a 10-year, $115 million naming rights partnership for the city's arena to be known as the Mortgage Matchup Center, after UWM's mortgagematchup.com site.
Ishbia, president and CEO of UWM,
"Arizona is one of the strongest markets for mortgage brokers and we see a fantastic opportunity through Mortgage Matchup to help consumers better understand the value of having an expert advising them through this process," said Ishbia in a press release Thursday.
While Ishbia's Player 15 group operates the venue, the city of Phoenix
Why the arena wasn't named after UWM
Some of the 30 NBA teams play in arenas named after financial institutions — including the Rocket Arena, where the Dan Gilbert-owned Cleveland Cavaliers play. UWM didn't seek to name the Phoenix arena after itself because it's a business-to-business company, UWM Chief Marketing Officer Sarah DeCiantis told National Mortgage News.
"We really do everything that we can to highlight mortgage brokers, because at the end of the day, that is who the consumer needs to know," she said.
The venue, formerly known as the Footprint Center after a technology firm, is scheduled to host the 2026 NCAA Women's FInal Four, the 2027 NBA All Star Game, and this year's WNBA Finals, beginning with Game 1 between the Mercury and the Las Vegas Aces Friday night.
DeCiantis highlighted the growth of the professional basketball leagues, particularly the WNBA, which has recorded
"You become a household name, and that's something that then people remember," said DeCiantis.
The naming deal promoting Mortgage Matchup comes two days after the second-largest wholesale lender, Rocket Pro,
UWM is the industry's largest originator and recorded $39.7 billion in volume in the second quarter, its
