Mohegan Sun Arena
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The Mohegan Sun Arena is a 10,000 seat multi-purpose arena in Uncasville, Connecticut located inside the Mohegan Sun resort and casino. The arena facility features 30,000 square feet of configurable exhibition space and a 400-foot clear span. It was built by the Perini Building company, and opened in 2001.
It is a unique venue that favor sports fans, families, casual and casino guests all at once. The arena is located almost at the center of the casino. The arena seats can be reached without ever technically stepping foot on the casino floor.
History
The arena originally served as home of the Mohegan Wolves arena football team until it was sold and moved to Manchester, New Hampshire in 2004.On January 28, 2003 the arena was announced publicly to be the official home court for the Connecticut Sun. Prior to the fall of 2002, the NBA operating model prevented any WNBA team to exist standalone without a NBA brother counterpart. By the time the Connecticut Sun moved in, Val Ackerman was the WNBA president, M. Jodi Rell was the state's Lieutenant Governor and Mark L. Brown was the chairman of the Mohegan Tribe. While the arena is attached to the Mohegan Sun casino, the facility does not accept any form of sports wagering or sports booking.
The multi-purpose facility has hosted a wide variety of events from American Kennel Club's Challenge Dog show, concerts featuring Shania Twain, Cher, Bette Midler, Sting, Simon & Garfunkel to the more regular sporting events such as WWE shows, NCAA games, Professional Bowlers Association tournaments, UFC bouts, World's Strongest Man Super Series Competition.
Major network and cable television broadcasting companies, including CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, ESPN and CNN have all produced events through this arena.
On September 8, 2005, as a companion to the arena, the Mohegan sun casino opened its first Connecticut Sun merchandise store called "Winter Essentials". It mainly sold Connecticut Sun WNBA team goods. It is the first store in the United States that sold professional basketball goods on casino ground.
Seating
As of 2006, the seatings can be configured into 5 common sports configurations. Basketball, boxing, bowling, rodeo, ping pong. It also can be reconfigured to fit 3 types of concerts: regular, fullhouse and round. The arena has won awards for being one of America's most modern concert venues.
Notable Events
- October 26, 2001 - NBA Pre-Season Game with Boston Celtics vs Washington Wizards. Michael Jordan played at the arena as a player, not general manager. It was the first professional basketball game ever held at the arena.
- December 1, 2001 - Women’s Professional Tennis featuring Martina Navratilova vs. Monica Seles
- 2002 National Lacrosse League All-Star Game
- 2002 National Women’s Basketball League (NWBL) Pro Cup Championship
- 2002 Boxing Fight of the Year featuring Micky Ward vs. Arturo Gatti
- February 6-8, 2004 - The first round of the Davis Cup with United States vs. Austria
- 2004 Gymnastics Championships and Celebration of Gold Medalists Paul Hamm and Carly Patterson
- July 9, 2005 - WNBA All-Star game
- 2005 Killerspin Extreme Table Tennis Championship
- April 4, 2006 Twisted Logic Tour (Coldplay)
References
External links
| Current arenas in the Women's National Basketball Association | ||
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference | |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte Bobcats Arena | Conseco Fieldhouse | Madison Square Garden | Mohegan Sun Arena | Palace of Auburn Hills | UIC Pavilion | Verizon Center | ARCO Arena | AT&T Center | KeyArena | Staples Center | Target Center | Toyota Center | US Airways Center | |
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