From baltimoreravens.com
The Baltimore Ravens will continue to play their home games at “The Bank” through the 2037 season.
M&T Bank and the Ravens have reached an agreement to extend their strategic partnership for another 10 years beyond the current contract, which was set to expire after the 2027 season. The announcement comes almost 20 years to the day after the organizations entered a partnership that has always been about more than putting the bank’s name on the 71,000-seat M&T Bank Stadium – often referred to simply as “The Bank.”
Since first announcing their partnership May 6, 2003, M&T and the Ravens have worked together with numerous business, community, and elected leaders to strengthen communities throughout the Baltimore region. That commitment will continue as part of the organizations’ partnership extension and include additional investments in providing financial education programs to Greater Baltimore students each year.
The contract extension also preserves one of the longest-running stadium naming rights deals in the National Football League (NFL). Only Raymond James Stadium (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), FedExField (Washington Commanders), Ford Field (Detroit Lions) and Gillette Stadium (New England Patriots) have maintained their relationships longer than M&T Bank and the Baltimore Ravens.
Financial terms of the latest agreement were not disclosed.
“The partnership between M&T and the Ravens has worked so well for so long because the organizations share similar values of integrity, determination, and teamwork and a common mission to make Baltimore better. That’s also why it made sense from M&T’s perspective to extend our partnership with the Ravens through the 2037 season,” said Augie Chiasera, M&T Bank’s regional president for Greater Baltimore. “We take a lot of pride in seeing the M&T Bank name on our football team’s stadium. It’s a symbol of our commitment to serve the Baltimore community.”
This marks the second time M&T and the Ravens have extended their partnership, which began as a 15-year agreement in 2003. The two sides also announced in May 2014 a 10-year extension that took the partnership through the 2027 NFL season. With five more seasons remaining on that contract, the latest agreement extends the partnership through 2037.
“When I first met [former M&T regional president] Bob Sadler in 2003, it quickly became apparent that M&T Bank is a special organization and that we could be tremendous partners,” Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said. “From that moment, I knew we were aligned in the objective to serve our community, and it was clear that this wouldn’t be a short-term partnership. Their commitment is so much deeper than the name on a stadium. They have impacted countless individuals and organizations with exceptional compassion, and I couldn’t be happier with our relationship. We take great pride in our collaboration with M&T Bank, because our efforts are built on mutual respect and a meaningful connection to the community.”
Ravens president Sashi Brown added: “We are thrilled and honored to extend our longstanding partnership with M&T Bank, our great teammates in serving Baltimore. M&T has grown into one of the top banks in the nation and established itself as a leader in community impact work. We share M&T’s commitment to pursuing excellence and community impact, and that alignment has allowed our partnership to flourish. The past two decades together are worth celebrating, and it brings us great excitement to know that the iconic moments at M&T Bank Stadium – ‘The Bank’ – will continue.”
A Partnership Focused on More Than Football
When M&T and the Ravens began their partnership 20 years ago, they pledged to combine the strength of the two organizations to improve communities throughout the Baltimore area. M&T and the Ravens have delivered on those promises – and many more.
Since 2003, the Ravens have distributed more than 15,000 tickets to young people and their family members to attend games at M&T Bank Stadium, receive an Honor Rows T-shirt, visit the field during pre-game warmups and be recognized during the game on the RavensVision high-definition video screens. M&T and the Ravens also have worked with other philanthropic businesses throughout the area to serve nonprofit organizations like the Maryland Food Bank, Civic Works, Blue Water Baltimore, Catch a Lift Fund, Parks and People Foundation, and more.
As a partner of the Ravens Foundation Inc., M&T Bank also has contributed more than $1 million, which has been allocated to a range of community initiatives during the past 20 years. The Ravens Foundation is the team’s charitable arm committed to encouraging and enabling the healthy development of youth in Baltimore and other parts of Maryland. Recent foundation projects include the installation of new educational spaces at Baltimore City’s Franklin Square Elementary/Middle School and a Ravens-themed playground at Northwest Regional Park in Owings Mills. In July 2022, the foundation distributed $100,000 in grants to help several nonprofit organizations fund a variety of projects, including interscholastic athletic programs for students with disabilities, cooking and nutrition education, boxing training and after-school mentorship programs.
“Our partnership with the Baltimore Ravens is not simply about name recognition,” said Francesco Lagutaine, M&T Bank’s chief marketing officer. “It’s about connecting with the Baltimore community in meaningful ways that improve the lives of our neighbors.”
In 2014, M&T, one of Greater Baltimore’s largest corporate givers, and the Ravens launched Touchdown for Teachers, a program that recognizes local teachers for outstanding service to their students, schools, and communities. Through the first decade of the program, M&T and the Ravens will have awarded more than $35,000 to 40 award finalists, including 10 grand-prize winners. More than 4,000 teachers representing over 2,500 schools have been nominated. This year’s finalists and winner will be announced in May.
Employees of M&T Bank and the Ravens also have rolled up their sleeves together to volunteer in communities throughout Baltimore during the past two decades. Those projects have included neighborhood landscaping and beautification, stream clean-ups, food drives, school supply distribution, playground construction and more. In 2019, M&T and the Ravens partnered with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Baltimore to renovate the Webster Kendrick Club at Callaway Elementary School in Baltimore. In 2022, more than 100 volunteers from M&T and the Ravens picked thousands of pounds of potatoes at First Fruits Farm in Baltimore County for distribution to food banks and pantries throughout Central Maryland and parts of Pennsylvania and Virginia. More than 100 employees from both organizations also have participated in Earth Day clean-up activities over the past two years, including the most recent project at Greenmount West Community Center in Baltimore on April 18.