Heinz bottles coming down from Steelers' Acrisure Stadium

The Heinz Stadium name is no more. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Heinz ketchup bottles coming down from Steelers' Acrisure Stadium

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 7/18/22

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced last week that what had been Heinz Field for over 20 years would now be known as Acrisure Stadium after the insurance brokerage firm out of Michigan purchased the venue's naming rights. Shortly after, Heinz said in a statement that the Steelers "found a new partner willing to pay significantly more than we could justify." The Pittsburgh-based ketchup company added that "Heinz will remain a significant, long-term sponsor of the Steelers" and also said that "we’re excited to announce the details of our new partnership in the days ahead."

It appears such a partnership does not include keeping what some fans view to be iconic ornaments at the stadium.

Per TMZ Sports and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, videos emerged showing the stadium's Heinz ketchup bottles being removed by a crane:

This is a downer pic.twitter.com/gZPJBEOEUD
— Andrew Fillipponi (@ThePoniExpress) July 18, 2022

I'd bet the new stadium sponsor lobbied loudly against a side deal between the Steelers and Heinz to keep the ketchup bottles in place. It would be even harder to get people to quit calling the place "Heinz Field" with those bottles still there.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) July 18, 2022

Florio also wrote in his piece that it's currently unclear what will happen with the ketchup bottles moving forward. They could be auctioned off or simply placed in storage.

Passionate Steelers fans from around the country have yet to embrace the Acrisure Stadium moniker. As of early Monday afternoon, a petition calling for the club to change the venue's name had been signed by nearly 8,000 individuals.

It won't matter, though, as Acrisure and the Steelers put pen to paper on a 15-year deal for the stadium's naming rights.

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