Photo credit: https://www.bridgestonearena.com/teams/detail/predators
So, what’s the difference between Buffalo, New York and Nashville, Tennessee? Besides the obvious, Nashville is on its way to getting a huge upgrade to its hockey arena, Bridgestone Arena, home of the Nashville Predators.[1] Meanwhile, in Buffalo, there are disputes going on around if the Keybank Center, home of the Buffalo Sabres, should get an upgrade at all and who actually owns it.[2] Nashville is undergoing a $650 million renovation of their arena, which sits on prime real estate right on Broadway in downtown Nashville, where thousands of tourists flock every year.[3] Keybank Center, while still in downtown Buffalo, sits in an old warehouse district that only ever sees foot traffic on game days and for other sporadic events (and that’s being generous).[4] Nashville is booming while Buffalo is in $50 million of debt and cannot afford to assume ownership of the arena from Erie County unless New York State steps in to help out.[5] As you can see, each arena is in a vastly different situation, with one being funded by all private money while the other is like a toddler of divorced parents bickering about who should be supporting it.[6] Which begs the question, why is there such a stark difference in the status of these two arenas and what lies in store for each?
Erie County, the county in which Buffalo lies, is trying to get out of the arena business per County Executive Mark Poloncarz.[7] The county is in the process of sunsetting the lease it has with the Buffalo Bills for Highmark Stadium when the new stadium is set to open in 2026.[8] Because Buffalo is a small market by professional sports standards, it requires a lot of public investment in the expensive infrastructure to support professional sports teams. Without it, owners have threatened to move the teams out of town.[9] Nashville on the other hand, has seen significant growth in the past and is projected to grow even faster in the near future.[10] This is enough to attract large corporations to relocate their headquarters to the city and to sponsor new sport arenas and arena upgrades.[11] This includes a new football stadium which is funded by roughly 50% private dollars, compared to roughly 40% private dollars in Buffalo.[12] While politicians duke it out in the media about who will be responsible for the upkeep of Keybank Center, leaders in Nashville are planning for the next 30-plus years.[13] As you can see, the differences between the two markets are stark and that is reflected in how each responds to the needs of its sports teams.
[1] https://www.tennessean.com/story/money/2025/04/22/nashville-bridgestone-arena-plans-650m-transformation-in-2027/83199370007/
[2] https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/local/buffalo-cant-afford-monumental-task-overseeing-keybank-center-if-erie-county-walks-away-lease-lawmaker-says/71-43b2e301-329b-4a10-bdb8-66befe7443e7
[3] See supra note 1.
[4] https://wbuf.com/keybank-center-lease-buffalo/
[5] See supra note 2.
[6] See supra notes 1 and 2.
[7] See supra note 2.
[8] https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/37416145/buffalo-bills-get-approval-30-year-lease-new-stadium
[9] https://wyrk.com/bills-offers-leave-wny/
[10] https://nchstats.com/nashville-population/#:~:text=Nashville%2C%20Tennessee%2C%20known%20for%20its,TLDR
[11] https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/02/alliancebernstein-is-moving-to-nashville-from-manhattan-to-save-money.html; see supra note 1.
[12] https://www.forbes.com/sites/timnewcomb/2023/04/27/new-21-billion-tennessee-titans-stadium-plan-moves-forward-after-passing-760-million-in-bonds-and-other-approvals/; see supra note 8.
[13] See supra note 1.
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