Image courtesy of the University of Connecticut

One of the biggest banks operating in Connecticut may not have its name on the premier venue for the UConn basketball – that went to a smaller rival – but it’s not giving up on the competition.

M&T Bank announced last week that it’s inked a 20-year naming rights deal for the University of Connecticut’s on-campus basketball venue, the Gampel Pavilion. It will be henceforth known as the M&T Bank Center at Gampel Pavilion.

New signage was erected at the arena over the weekend.

“This partnership with UConn represents more than a sponsorship and a name on a building, it’s a shared commitment to the future of education, economic mobility and civic leadership across our region. Gampel Pavilion is one of the most recognizable and meaningful gathering places in Connecticut, and M&T is honored to now be a part of the legacy made possible by Harry A. Gampel,” Michael Weinstock, M&T Bank’s Hartford regional president, said in a statement. “For generations, Gampel has been home to some of the defining moments in UConn athletics and a source of connection and pride for communities across Connecticut. We’re proud to stand alongside Connecticut’s flagship university, and one of its most respected institutions, to invest in programs and in an arena that create lasting impact for students, families and communities.”

The $32.5 million deal comes as the school works through a nearly $100 million renovation of the 36-year-old arena, named for philanthropist and Civil Rights Movement member Harry A. Gampel. In addition to naming rights, the bank will get: and exclusive university-wide banking sponsorship, be designated the official banking partner of the UConn Huskies, the right to support student-athletes in Name, Image and Likeness opportunities, sponsorship of unspecified “key university-wide events,” and the right to issue co-branded affinity credit card and commercial cards for customers of the bank.

The $1.6 million per year average spend is also less than rival PeoplesBank spends per year on its 10-year, $2 million-per-year sponsorship deal to put its name on downtown Hartford’s former XL Center, now the PeoplesBank Arena, where the UConn Huskies men’s and women’s basketball and men’s ice hockey teams play some of their games. The arena also hosts concerts, sporting events and is home ice for the Hartford Wolf Pack AHL team.

M&T Bank has around 100 branches statewide after its purchase of Bridgeport-based PeoplesUnited Bank earlier this decade, and 10.46 percent of deposits statewide as of June 30, according to the latest FDIC data. Meanwhile Holyoke, Massachusetts-based PeoplesBank is trying to make inroads despite that market dominance. It only has seven branches statewide, entirely in the Hartford metro area, and less than a percent of the state’s deposits, but plans to grow.