The company, which was founded 30 years ago by Bill McDonald and now operates in NSW, the ACT and Queensland, also has the first option to renew its deal, brokered with Venues NSW.

McDonald Jones Homes founder Bill McDonald and avowed Knights supporter said the move was all about giving back to the community.

“Football and the stadium has been struggling for a few years and we like to help battlers and I know when we’ve been battling the people of the Hunter have supported us – and believe me, we battled for our first seven years,” Mr McDonald said. 

Mr McDonald and the company’s managing director Andrew Helmers would not disclose the value of the deal, citing contract confidentiality with Venues NSW.

Venues NSW chairman John Quayle said having a local company take up the naming rights sponsorship was a great outcome. 

“This sponsorship, I believe, is also a sign of the positive future this sporting precinct has for Newcastle and the Hunter,” Mr Quayle said. 

Mr Helmers said the stadium deal was “significantly larger” than the smaller sponsorship support the company had shown in the past, including for the Knights and Falcons, and aligned with its customer base.

“The stadium brings people together and we deal with lots of customers who attend as spectators, and all the teams who visit come out of our market base,” he said. 

“This deal is great for us, Venues NSW and the Hunter and we are hoping it will take our brand national and reinforce our position as a large local organisation.”