Times Union Center


The Times Union Center is an indoor arena located in Albany, New York. It is configurable and can accommodate from 6,000 to 17,500 people, with a maximum seating capacity of 15,500 for sporting events.
The building, designed by Crozier Associates and engineered by Clough Harbour & Associates, was built by Beltrone/MLB at a cost of $69.4 million.
The arena also has 25 luxury suites; each has 16 seats, cable television, a refrigerator, and a private bathroom. They are located at the top of the inner bowl. All suites are rented on three-year terms; all are currently sold out.

History

The arena was opened on January 30, 1990, as the Knickerbocker Arena, with a performance by Frank Sinatra.
The naming rights of the arena were sold to Pepsi in 1997 and it was known as Pepsi Arena from 1997 to 2006.
In May 2006, the naming rights were sold to the Times Union, a regional newspaper, and the name of the arena became the Times Union Center on January 1, 2007.
The building is managed by SMG.
It is within walking distance from the city's Greyhound bus station, as well as being close to hotels, bars and restaurants. The arena is also one of the largest in the United States for the size of the city it is located in.
When the New Jersey Devils' AHL franchise relocated to this arena in the summer of 2010, the arena received a new scoreboard, LED ribbons above the luxury suites and new outside lighting, as well as an upgraded home team locker room.

Sports

The current primary tenants of the Times Union Center is the Siena College's men's basketball teams.
Previous tenants have included the Albany Firebirds of af2, the original Albany Firebirds of the AFL, the Albany Empire of the AFL, the Albany Patroons of the CBA, the Albany Choppers of the IHL, the Albany River Rats of the AHL, the Albany Attack of the NLL and the New York Kick of the NPSL II.
The Times Union Center also regularly hosts exhibition games of major sports leagues. The NBA, WNBA and NHL have all played games at the arena.
The PBR hosted a Built Ford Tough Series event at the arena in January 2008.
In the Center's only tennis event, Andre Agassi played John McEnroe just three days after Agassi won the US Open in 1994.

Ice hockey

The Times Union Center was home to the American Hockey League from 1993, when the Albany River Rats became the building's primary tenant until 2017. The River Rats won the Calder Cup championship in 1994–95.
On April 24, 2008, one of the longest games in the history of the American Hockey League took place at the Times Union Center. Ryan Potulny scored the winning goal for the Philadelphia Phantoms at 2:58 of the fifth overtime period after 142 minutes and 58 seconds of hockey, played over 5 hours and 38 minutes. In the process, River Rats goaltender Michael Leighton set a modern-day record by making 98 saves.
Following the River Rats' relocation to Charlotte, N.C., in 2010, the Albany Devils began play in the AHL.
It was announced on January 31, 2017, that the Devils would relocate to Binghamton following the completion of the 2016–17 season ending 24 years of AHL hockey in the arena. At the time of the relocation, the Devils were drawing the lowest average attendance in the league.

WWE

The Times Union Center has hosted many live events and televised shows for the WWE. Notable events include the 1992
Royal Rumble, where Ric Flair won the 30-man over the top rope match to become the new WWF Champion. In 2006, at WWE New Year's Revolution, Edge cashed in the first ever Money in the Bank contract to defeat John Cena for the WWE Championship. It was also here on March 22, 1999 that Steve Austin drove to the ring in a beer truck and gave a "beer bath" to Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon and The Rock.

College sports

The Times Union Center hosted the ECAC Hockey championships each March from 2003 until 2010, when the league announced the tournament was moved to Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey; and is often home to the annual Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference basketball tournament.
In 2003, the Times Union Center hosted the NCAA basketball East Regional, which was won by Syracuse University on their way to their first national championship. The arena also hosted the first and second rounds of the 1995 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament as the Knickerbocker Arena.
In 2008, the Times Union Center hosted the NCAA ice hockey East Regional tournament. The arena hosted ice-hockey regionals in even-numbered years from 2004 through 2010, which was the eighth time the East Regional has been held at the site.
In 2000, the Times Union Center hosted a regional quarterfinal between St. Lawrence University and Boston University, which went into quadruple overtime; becoming the longest game in the history of the tournament and the second longest game in Division I men's college hockey history.
The Times Union Center also hosted the Frozen Four on two occasions, in 1992 when Lake Superior State University defeated Wisconsin for the national championship, and again in 2001 as the Pepsi Arena when Boston College defeated North Dakota.
The venue hosted the NCAA women's basketball tournament from March 28 to 31, 2015 and NCAA hockey East Regional for the ninth time from March 25 to 27, 2016.They also are hosting the women's NCAA March Madness East Regional in 2018 and 2019. In 2020, the men's first and second rounds were to be hosted at the Times Union Center by Siena College and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, but the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

High school sports

The Times Union Center has been a regular host of the NYSPHSAA Wrestling Championships since 2005 and has won a bid to host the annual event each year through 2018. According to the Albany County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the wrestling state tournament annually contributes more than $1.5 million into the Capital Region economy, and in 2011 it was the second-largest sporting event in Albany County.

Music

Since its opening show, starring Frank Sinatra on January 30, 1990, the Times Union Center has become a popular concert venue, due to its proximity to larger cities like New York City, Boston, and Montreal, where concert tickets tend to sell out faster.
The open parking lots near the arena provide an excellent tailgating area for fans before the show.
In 1990, the Grateful Dead recorded their 1996 release, Dozin' at the Knick, at the arena.
Metallica played at the Times Union Center, then called the Knickerbocker Arena on February 28, 1992 during their Wherever We May Roam Tour.
Phish has played the arena 13 times, most recently during the fall tour of 2018.
Metallica played at the arena, now-then called the Pepsi Arena, on October 9, 2004, during their Madly in Anger with the World tour.
Whitesnake played at the arena during their Slip of the Tongue world tour in 1990. The concert took place February 15, and there were a lot of empty seats due to a blizzard keeping many fans from getting to the arena.
Metallica played at the arena on November 12, 2009 during their World Magnetic Tour.
Demi Lovato played at the arena on September 7, 2014 as part of her Demi World Tour.
On March 18, 2019, Ariana Grande opened her very popular Sweetener World Tour at the arena.
Celine Dion returned to the arena after 21 years on December 7, 2019 as part of her Courage World Tour. Dion's first performance at the arena took place on December 1, 1998 as part of her Let's Talk About Love World Tour.

Notable capacity sellouts

The New York State Democratic Convention nominated then-First Lady Hillary Clinton as its U.S. Senate candidate at their statewide convention at Times Union Center on May 16, 2000. Her husband, President of the United States Bill Clinton, attended the event.
The WWE's Royal Rumble was held here, with Ric Flair winning the annual event.

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