Exterior view of the Oracle Arena

Aerial view of the Oracle Arena and surrounding area

History

Franchises to call the arena home

The arena has been home to the Golden State Warriors^[1] since 1966, excepting the one-year hiatus. 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 also hosted the Bay Bombers (Roller Derby, 1966?1973) as well as the California Golden Seals^[2] (also known as the Oakland Seals and California Seals previously) of the NHL from 1967?1976. The Oakland Skates, a professional roller hockey team, also played here from 1993 to 1995.

Renovation

Over the years though, the arena became increasingly outdated, lacking the luxuries of newer ones. In addition, 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 tore down much of the old arena's interior and then building a new seating bowl 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). 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 Oracle will continue to be managed by Oakland-Alameda County Authority (JPA) and SMG. The JPA will be asked to approve the deal at its November 10 meeting. A formal press conference of the agreement was held on October 30.^[3] That formal announcement refers to Oracle Arena.^[4]

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.^[5]

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.

Other events hosted

It hosted WCW SuperBrawl 1999 and the 2000 NBA All-Star Game.

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.

The arena has also been used as a concert venue for bands like Coldplay (2006), Jay-Z (2008), Mary J. Blige (2008), Pink Floyd (1977), Aerosmith (1983, 1984, 1988 & 2006), Billy Idol (1984), Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (1984), (1999), & (2007), Rage Against the Machine (1997), Nirvana (1993), Tool (2002) & (2006), U2 (2001) & (2005), The Rolling Stones (1969, 1999, 2002), Britney Spears (2002, 2004), Paul McCartney (2002) Janet Jackson (1990, 1994, 1998, 2001,2008), Mariah Carey (2006), Celine Dion (1998), NSYNC (1999, 2002), Backstreet Boys (2001), Usher (2004), Destiny's Child (2005), Shakira (2003), Ricky Martin (2000), Beyonce (2004, 2007), Christina Aguilera (2003, 2007), Justin Timberlake (2003), Cher (1999, 2002), TLC (2000), Madonna (1990, 2001,2008), Kenny Chesney (2005, 2006), Maná (2007), Metallica (2008). The venue was also featured in the Duran Duran concert film Arena (An Absurd Notion) and As The Lights Go Down, filmed in 1984.

See also

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

References

External links

• ORACLE Arena & McAfee Coliseum Official Website

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