Orlando’s iconic Citrus Bowl now bears the name of the nation’s self-proclaimed purveyor of “RVs, RV accessories, and RV-related services.” The stadium, which since its opening in 1936, has gone by the names Orlando Stadium, Tangerine Bowl, Citrus Bowl, Orlando Stadium, Florida Citrus Bowl, and most recently, Orlando Citrus Bowl, will for at least the next eight years be called Camping World Stadium.
The stadium formerly known as the Citrus Bowl is home to Major League Soccer’s Orlando City SC, as well as annual events like the college football’s Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl and Russell Athletic Bowl and, of course, the autosports spectacular Monster Jam.
As part of the deal, the stadium will stadium will host a neutral-site college football game each year called the Camping World Kickoff, the first of which will feature Florida State and Ole Miss September 5. The next two years’ games will feature Alabama and Louisville in 2018 and Florida and Miami in 2019.
The reactions on social media to yesterday’s announcement have ranged from resignation and begrudging acceptance to contempt.
Orlando Citrus Bowl changing name to Camping World Stadium. God help us all. https://t.co/QpDhpWSRcw
— The Mane Land (@TheManeLand) April 26, 2016
Camping World Stadium is not the end of the world, writes @DavidEWhitley https://t.co/qWHWiHQ3rL pic.twitter.com/DBHgvusHoP
— Orlando Sentinel (@orlandosentinel) April 27, 2016
Goodbye Citrus Bowl. Camping World Stadium is new name of Orlando stadium
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) April 26, 2016
Citrus Bowl renamed as Camping World Stadium (really rolls right off the tongue, no?): https://t.co/7HCNu3ZCS1 pic.twitter.com/W9ly4IqjVV
— Uni Watch (@UniWatch) April 26, 2016
While lots of stadiums out there have taken the names of corporate sponsors, this one feels like it’s going to take a while to catch on. (That said, I still call Chase Field in Arizona the BOB, and I call the Willis Tower in Chicago the Sears Tower, so maybe I’m just stubborn.)
Of course, what every sponsor-named stadium needs is a good fan-generated nickname, so we’ll look forward to seeing what Camping World Stadium really ends up being called.
