Art Rooney II: Steelers Hope to Extend Acrisure Stadium Lease Beyond 2030

PITTSBURGH — The home of the Pittsburgh Steelers got a new name this week in a 15-year deal to become Acrisure Stadium, but the venue might not be the Steelers home for that entire time, as the Steelers’ lease runs out in 2030.

Steelers president Art Rooney II said on Tuesday that the team hopes to remain at Acrisure Stadium throughout the 15-year tenure of the naming rights deal and beyond, but said that there have not been significant talks to the that end.

“We’d love to and we assume we will extend the lease at some point,” Rooney said. “We haven’t quite gotten to that point yet. We still have, I think eight years on the existing lease. At some point, we’ll get into those discussions down the road. …

“I certainly hope that we’re here for longer than that. Obviously, different contracts have different terms and you deal with them as terms expire.”

Rooney also for the first time hinted Tuesday about a future without him at the helm of the Steelers. The 69-year-old has been the team’s president since 2003, but said the next stadium deal might be negotiated by his successor.

“It may not be me,” he said. “Hopefully, it’s somebody named Rooney. But some of those things will happen further down the road. Things like this allow us to be competitive in Pittsburgh, that’s the bottom line.”

The Steelers lease with the Allegheny County Sports and Exhibition Authority expires in February 2031, after the end of the 2030 season. The Steelers can choose to unilaterally extend the existing lease in up to four five-year increments. The team and the SEA could also work out a new lease with different terms or a different financial commitment from the city and county.

Allegheny County executive Rich Fitzgerald, Pittsburgh mayor Ed Gainey and state senator Wayne Fontana were all in attendance at Tuesday’s press conference, but did not speak.