LEXINGTON, Ky. – The new home of Kentucky baseball has been officially named Kentucky Proud Park after approval by the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees on Friday.
The name is a tribute to farmers and businesses of the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the Big Blue Nation.
Kentucky Farm Bureau secured the rights to name the stadium from JMI Sports, UK Athletics’ multimedia rights partner. In turn, Kentucky Farm Bureau elected to name the stadium for Kentucky Proud, the state’s official agricultural marketing program housed at the Kentucky Department of Agriculture. No state taxpayer dollars were used in funding the agreement.
The UK Board of Trustees approved the naming at its regularly scheduled board meeting on Friday.
The Kentucky Proud program is funded through the generosity of the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund. The fund is directed by the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board and administered by the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy.
Construction, which began last year, has been completed on Kentucky Proud Park. The $49 million stadium gives Kentucky one of the best facilities in college baseball. Complete with permanent seating for 2,500 as well as stone terraces, grass berms and a 360-degree concourse that will bring its regular-season capacity to approximately 5,000, Kentucky Proud Park’s team areas give players and coaches everything they need to succeed while creating an ideal place for fans to support them.
The naming of Kentucky Proud Park represents an expansion of Kentucky Farm Bureau’s long-standing partnership with UK Athletics through an agreement with JMI Sports, UK’s multimedia rights partner. The naming rights agreement to Kentucky Proud Park is signed to a term of up to 15 years, running through 2033.
