DENVER • Denver reached a deal with the Colorado Avalanche and the Denver Nuggets to keep the two teams in the city through 2040.

Mayor Michael Hancock announced the tentative agreement Thursday in a pep-rally-style event on the steps of the Denver City and County Building complete with high school cheerleaders and bands and the mascots of both teams.

The agreement is subject to approval by the city council. A copy of the proposed contract was not immediately available.

The deal also must be approved by the two leagues involved, the NBA and NHL.

Hancock said Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, the owner of the two teams and their Pepsi Center home, approached the city about four years ago to negotiate an extension of the original agreement, which was set to expire in 2023.

“This is something we’ve been working on for about five years now,” Hancock said after the Avs’ mascot Bernie and the Nuggets’ mascot unveiled a sign with the two team logos and “2040” below them.

Hancock was once “Huddles,” a mascot for the Denver Broncos when they advanced to the Super Bowl in 1986.

KSE was founded by businessman E. Stanley Kroenke, also owner of football’s Los Angeles Rams and other sports properties. He was not present for the announcement, but several executives from the company were there.

Several city councilmembers were on hand for the announcement, including at-large City Councilwoman Deborah Ortega, who was part of the negotiating team

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The Nuggets and Avalanche are in their respective playoffs. And Hancock is seeking a third and final four-year term as mayor in the May 7 municipal election.

When asked about the timing of the announcement, Hancock noted the agreement had been worked on by three successive city attorneys over the last five years.

The Nuggets’ roots in Denver date back to 1967 when they joined the American Basketball Association, briefly as the Larks and then as the Rockets. They became the Nuggets in advance of joining the National Basketball Association in 1974.

The Avalanche were the former Quebec Nordiques. They arrived in Denver for the 1995-96 season and won a Stanley Cup championship that year.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock speaks during a pep rally-style announcement of an agreement that will keep the Nuggets and Avalanche in Denver through 2043. Photo by John Ensslin, ColoradoPolitics.com.