Amerant Bank Arena announced as new name for Florida Panthers home rink

The building now known as Amerant Bank Arena has been the home of the Panthers since 1998

The Florida Panthers home arena in Sunrise is undergoing some changes, and it starts at the top.

Of the building.

Amerant Bank Arena is the new name for Florida’s longtime hockey home in Sunrise.

On Tuesday, the Panthers formally announced Coral Gables-based Amerant Bank as the team’s new arena naming rights partner.

It’s a five-year deal, per source, but financial terms have not been disclosed.

“After a comprehensive search with WME Sports over the past year, we felt expanding our experienced and successful partnership with Amerant Bank would be the best business decision to align with both our goals of delivering first-class customer service and serving our local South Florida community,” Panthers President and CEO Matt Caldwell said in a statement.

The arena had gone several years without a naming partner, being dubbed FLA Live Arena following the expiration of their previous deal with Truist in 2021.

It was that same year when the Panthers and Amerant Bank began their business relationship, with Amerant becoming Florida’s official helmet branding partner for home games.

In November of last year Amerant became the official bank of the Panthers.

The team’s premium center ice seats behind the player benches, which features an all-inclusive lounge at the top of the section, was rebranded the Amerant Vault, and the helmet sticker partnership spread to both home and away games that season as well.

A shiny new name isn’t the only change expected around the arena.

Sources tell THN that a new sound system may also be in the works, something the building has needed for quite a while.

Last season, when the NHL All-Star Game and Stanley Cup Final were held in South Florida, the league brought in temporary speakers.

There is a new spotlight on the Panthers. After years of toiling below the playoff line, Florida has reached the postseason in four straight seasons.

They’ve won a Presidents’ Trophy and reached the Final during that time.

With the team emerging as an annual contender, and season ticket purchases skyrocketing, it makes perfect sense that the Cats’ home arena would follow suit in the ascension.