ARCO Arena (originally called the Sacramento Sports Arena and sometimes referred to as the ''Original ARCO Arena'' or ''ARCO Arena I'' to distinguish it from its
successor
Successor may refer to:
* An entity that comes after another (see Succession (disambiguation))
Film and TV
* ''The Successor'' (film), a 1996 film including Laura Girling
* ''The Successor'' (TV program), a 2007 Israeli television program Musi ...
) was an indoor
arena
An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...
in
Sacramento, California
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
. It was the NBA's smallest arena as it held just 10,333 people and was built in 1985 to temporarily accommodate the
NBA's
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...
, who had relocated from
Kansas City. The arena's first event was a fashion show on September 12, 1985. The arena also hosted boxing matches.
The idea to move the Kings to the building was first pitched in late 1984, with the building being described as a "warehouse under construction" by the
Sacramento Bee
''The Sacramento Bee'' is a daily newspaper published in Sacramento, California, in the United States. Since its foundation in 1857, ''The Bee'' has become the largest newspaper in Sacramento, the fifth largest newspaper in California, and the 2 ...
. The arena cost $12 million to build.
Located north of Sacramento's downtown, ARCO Arena was nicknamed "The Madhouse on Market Street", and Kings games in this small venue were 100% sold out. Its official name of "ARCO Arena" is believed to be the first example of an NBA team selling
naming rights
Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization whereby a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event, typically for a defined period of t ...
to a brand new facility: in this case, rights were sold to the
Atlantic Richfield Company
ARCO ( ) is a brand of gasoline stations currently owned by Marathon Petroleum after BP sold its rights. BP commercializes the brand in Northern California, Oregon and Washington, while Marathon has rights for the rest of the United States an ...
, which is now a subsidiary of
Marathon Petroleum. The Kings sold the naming rights for $5 million over ten years in August 1985, which included the naming rights for the new arena.
The Kings left this building in 1988 to move to the new
ARCO Arena, built one mile (1.6 km) to the west. The structure survived as an office building for
Sprint Communications
Sprint Corporation was an American telecommunications company. Before it merged with T-Mobile US on April 1, 2020, it was the fourth-largest mobile network operator in the United States, serving 54.3 million customers as of June 30, 2019. The co ...
. On December 19, 2005, the
California Department of Consumer Affairs
The California Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) is a department within the California Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. DCA's stated mission is to serve the interests of California's consumers by ensuring a standard of profess ...
moved their headquarters into the building.
References
External links
Ballparks.com – ARCO Arena IPhotos of the original ARCO Arena
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arco Arena I
Basketball venues in California
Music venues in California
Sports venues in Sacramento, California
Defunct basketball venues in the United States
Sacramento Kings venues
Sports venues completed in 1985
1988 disestablishments in California
Former National Basketball Association venues
1985 establishments in California
Defunct indoor arenas in California