Top-performing bank JPMorgan Chase is putting its ball in the court of the top-performing Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors, the NBA 2014-15 champions and the odds-on favorite to win the title this year as well, will play at the Chase Center in San Francisco beginning in 2019, when the team's new venue is expected to be completed.
It's a 20-year deal, meaning that through 2039, the Warriors will be playing at a stadium named for JPMorgan's consumer banking arm.
CEO Jamie Dimon joined Warriors point guard and baby-faced assassin Steph Curry and Warriors majority owner Joe Lacob to make the announcement.
"This is a real long-term commitment," Dimon said at the event. "It's just the beginning of something beautiful."
Today the Warriors play at the Oracle Arena in Oakland. Lacob said the new Warriors arena will be 100 percent privately financed, with a little help from the bank that's backing the venue.
For JPMorgan, the move represents a minor coup — Wells Fargo is headquartered in San Francisco, while JPMorgan, which also advertises at Madison Square Garden, is helmed in New York. Plus, as JPMorgan strives to bolster its presence in the white-hot San Francisco tech scene, the deal helps boost its visibility with arguably the top sports brand in California at the moment.
The bank already has branding rights at other sporting venues and arenas including the U.S. Open; at Chase Field in Arizona, where Major League Baseball's Diamondbacks play; and with several East Coast pro sports franchises.
In his remarks, Dimon pointed out that JPMorgan Chase supports roughly 50 percent of San Francisco Bay Area homes. The bank's branding will be throughout the arena, and also within stadium clubs at the Chase Center.
Currently, Curry and the Warriors lead the NBA with a 42-4 record, and are within striking distance of the 1996 Chicago Bulls' all-time record 72-10 season-long win-loss tally.
