Oracle Arena

Oracle Arena
The Arena in Oakland, The Coliseum Arena
Former names	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena (1966–1996) The Arena in Oakland (1997–2004) Oakland Arena (2004–2006)
Location	7000 Coliseum Way, Oakland, California 94621
Coordinates	37°45′1″N 122°12′11″W / 37.75028°N 122.20306°W / 37.75028; -122.20306Coordinates: 37°45′1″N 122°12′11″W / 37.75028°N 122.20306°W / 37.75028; -122.20306
Broke ground	1964
Opened	November 9, 1966
Renovated	1996-1997
Owner	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority (City of Oakland and Alameda County)
Operator	SMG
Construction cost	$121 million (1996-1997 renovation) ($169 million in 2011 dollars[1])
Architect	HNTB
Capacity	Basketball: 15,025 (1966-1997), 19,596 (1997-present) Concert: 20,000 Ice hockey: 13,601 (1966-1997), 17,200 (1997-present)
Tenants
Golden State Warriors (NBA) (1966–1967, 1971–1996, 1997–present) California Seals (WHL) (1966–1967) Oakland Seals (NHL) (1967–1970) California Golden Seals (NHL) (1970–1976) Golden Bay Earthquakes (MISL I) (1982–1983) Oakland Skates (RHI) (1993–1995) California Golden Bears (NCAAB) (part-time 1966–1997, full-time 1997–1999)

Exterior view of the Oracle Arena

An overhead view of the Oakland sports complex; Oracle Arena is to left and the Overstock.com Coliseum is to the right

The Oracle (originally Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena, formally The Arena in Oakland and Oakland Arena and commonly Oakland Coliseum Arena, Oracle Arena, The New Arena and The O) is an indoor arena, in Oakland, California, located in the Coliseum Industrial area. It was originally constructed as the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena in 1966.

Among the current NBA venues in the state of California (Staples Center in Los Angeles - 18,997, and Sacramento's Power Balance Pavilion - 17,317), it has the largest seating capacity, holding 19,596 spectators. It is also the oldest facility still in use by the NBA.

History

Franchises to call the arena home

The arena has been home to the Golden State Warriors^[2] since 1971, excepting the one-year hiatus while undergoing renovations. It had been used by the Warriors intermittently as early as 1966. The California Golden Bears of the Pac-10 played the entire 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons at the arena while their primary home, Harmon Gym, was being renovated into Haas Pavilion. For some years before then, the Bears played occasional games against popular non-conference opponents at the arena.

The Coliseum's first tenants were the California Seals of the Western Hockey League, who moved there from the Cow Palace in anticipation of their transfer to the National Hockey League. The Coliseum continued to host the Seals^[3] until they moved to Cleveland after the 1975–76 NHL season. The Coliseum also hosted the Bay Bombers (Roller Derby, 1966–1973) as well as the Golden Bay Earthquakes of the original MISL during the 1982-83 season. The Oakland Skates, a professional roller hockey team, also played here from 1993 to 1995.

Renovation

Over the years, the arena became increasingly outdated, lacking the luxuries of newer ones. With just over 15,000 seats, it was one of the smallest arenas in the league. Rather than building a new arena in Oakland – or, for that matter, in San Francisco or San Jose, as some wanted – the decision was made to proceed with a $121 million renovation that involved tearing down much of the old arena's interior and building new seating within the older confines. The original arena's external walls, roof and foundation remained intact, similar to what was done to the KeyArena in Seattle. The renovation began in mid-1996 and was completed in time for the Golden State Warriors to return in the fall of 1997 (they played the intervening season at the San Jose Arena). Included in the renovation was a new LED centerhung scoreboard and 360-degree fascia display from Daktronics out of Brookings, South Dakota.^[4] The new arena seats 19,596 for basketball and 17,000 for ice hockey.

The Oracle

On October 20, 2006, the Golden State Warriors and the Oracle Corporation announced a 10-year agreement in which the Oakland Arena would be known as The Oracle. "The O" as it is often referred to as will continue to be managed by Oakland-Alameda County Authority (JPA) and SMG. The JPA approved the deal at its November 10 meeting. A formal press conference of the agreement was held on October 30.^[5] That formal announcement refers to Oracle Arena.^[6]

Attendance records

On May 13, 2007, 20,679 fans watched the Warriors lose to the Utah Jazz 115–101 in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals. This was the largest crowd to watch a game in the Warriors' 61-year history, and also the largest crowd to ever watch a basketball game in the state of California.

That record lasted until December 14, 2007, when the Warriors hosted the Los Angeles Lakers and packed in 20,705 at the Arena to set a new franchise and California attendance record.

The record was again broken on February 20, 2008, when the arena hosted 20,711 for the Warriors-Celtics game.^[7]

This record was yet again broken on April 10, 2008 when Oracle Arena hosted 20,737 fans in a Warriors loss to the Denver Nuggets.

Notable events

It hosted WCW SuperBrawl 1999, the June 9 event of WWE Raw in 2008 and February 9 event of WWE Raw in 2009. On May 23, 2010, the arena was scheduled to host the inaugural Over the Limit Pay-Per-View, but the event was moved to the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. It also hosted UFC 117 in 2010. On February 20, 2011, the arena hosted WWE Elimination Chamber. The Professional Bull Riders' Built Ford Tough Series held an event at the Oracle Arena in 2002 and 2008.

It has hosted Andre Ward fights as well. It has hosted three of his fights, against Edison Miranda, Mikkel Kessler and Allan Green.

The arena in Oakland hosted the West Regional of the 2006 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. It has twice before played host as the West Regional site in 1990 and 1995. It also hosted the 2000 NBA All-Star Game.

They also had a funeral for four fallen officers from the Oakland Police Department.

Creedence Clearwater Revival's performance in 1970 was filmed for television and released as an album, titled The Concert.

The Grateful Dead recorded Dick's Picks Volume 27 on December 16, 1992.

The venue was also featured in the Duran Duran concert film Arena (An Absurd Notion) and As The Lights Go Down, filmed in 1984.

The arena played host to the Tattoo the Earth Tour on August 9–11, 2002. The show featured performances by Slipknot, Slayer, Sevendust, Sepultura, Hed PE, Mudvayne, downset., Hatebreed, Full Devil Jacket, Famous, Amen, U.P.O., Nothingface, PPM, Cold, Relative Ash, Systematic, Six Feet Under, Candiria, Lamb of God, God Forbid, Darkest Hour, Unearth, All That Remains, Dropkick Murphys, Sick of It All, Tiger Army, Converge, The Unseen, Reach the Sky, Stretch Arm Strong, Kill Your Idols and Nashville Pussy. It also featured 42 tattoo artists from Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Malaysia, Manitoba, Spain, Switzerland and the US.

In the winter of 2003-2004, the Dave Matthews & Friends Tour (which only consisted of 12 stops across the country) concluded at the arena on January 16, 2004 and ended up clocking in at just over three hours, the longest of the tour. It's still the only time Matthews has covered The Rolling Stones' song "Can't You Hear Me Knocking".

German Industrial Metal act Rammstein performed at the Arena on May 18, 2011 on their first North American Tour in over 10 years.

See also

• o.co Coliseum (previously known as McAfee Coliseum and Network Associates Coliseum), the outdoor stadium immediately east of Oracle Arena and home of the Oakland Athletics and Oakland Raiders.

References

1. ^ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
2. ^ Oracle Arena
3. ^ The Oakland/Alameda County Coliseum Arena
4. ^ "Daktronics Photo Gallery: Oracle Arena". http://www.daktronics.com/ProductsServices/PhotoGallery/Pages/default.aspx?photoID=WP-12323&keywords=oracle%20arena&filters=. 
5. ^ WARRIORS: Golden State Warriors, Oracle Reach Arena Naming Rights Agreement
6. ^ WARRIORS: Warriors, ORACLE Formally Announce Naming Rights Agreement For ORACLE Arena
7. ^ "Baron Davis hits last-second jumper in Warriors' 119-117 win over Celtics". http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/02/20/sports/s222359S25.DTL&type=sports. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• ORACLE Arena & McAfee Coliseum Official Website

Events and tenants
Preceded by War Memorial Gymnasium & San Francisco Civic Auditorium Cow Palace	Home of the Golden State Warriors 1966 – 1967 1971 – 1996	Succeeded by Cow Palace San Jose Arena
Preceded by Madison Square Garden	WTA Tour Championships venues 1978	Succeeded by Madison Square Garden
Preceded by Olympiahalle, Munich	World Figure Skating Championships Venue 1992	Succeeded by Sportovní hala, Prague
Preceded by San Jose Arena	Home of the Golden State Warriors 1997 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by first arena	Home of the California Golden Seals 1967 – 1976	Succeeded by Richfield Coliseum (as Cleveland Barons)
Preceded by Madison Square Garden	Host of the NBA All-Star Game 2000	Succeeded by MCI Center