Grand Canyon University Arena (GCU Arena) is a 7,000-seat, multi-purpose entertainment and athletics facility in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, owned and operated by

Grand Canyon University Grand Canyon University (GCU) is a private for-profit Christian university in Phoenix, Arizona. Based on student enrollment, Grand Canyon University was the largest Christian university in the world in 2018, with 20,000 attending students on ...

. The arena is the home of

Lopes Lopes is a surname of Portuguese origin. It was originally a Patronymic, meaning ''Son of Lopo'', itself being derived from Latin ''lupus'', meaning ''wolf''. Its Spanish equivalent is ''López'', its Italian equivalent is '' Lupo'', its French e ...

men's and women's

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

teams, men's and women's volleyball teams and other university events.

History

GCU Arena officially opened its doors on September 2, 2011, just 15 months after the University announced the project. The construction of the arena was part of the University's $200 million campus expansion and growth. It regularly hosts Christian and secular concerts, outside performances, speaking engagements, Grand Canyon University athletic events, and commencement ceremonies. In addition to the arena, the university is in the process of upgrading the athletics facilities, building new classroom space, dormitories, and other educational facilities on campus.

Sports teams and other events

GCU Arena is home to Grand Canyon University's Lopes men’s and women’s basketball and men's and women's volleyball. GCU plays host to Christian and secular concerts, outside performances, speaking engagements, athletic events, and commencement ceremonies. Previous acts include:

Casting Crowns Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They lat ...

David Crowder Band David Crowder Band (stylized as David Crowder*Band and The David Crowder*Band) was a six-piece Christian rock and modern worship band from Waco, Texas. Their final album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Christian and No. 2 on the B ...

, M-1 Global Challenge,

Switchfoot Switchfoot is an American rock band from San Diego, California. The band's members are Jon Foreman (lead vocals, guitar), Tim Foreman (bass guitar, backing vocals), Chad Butler (drums, percussion), and Jerome Fontamillas (guitar, keyboards, back ...

, Pandora’s Unforgettable Moments on Ice featuring

David Archuleta David James Archuleta (born December 28, 1990) is an American pop singer. At ten years old, he won the children's division of the Utah Talent Competition, leading to other television singing appearances. When he was twelve years old, he becam ...

and

Mannheim Steamroller Mannheim Steamroller is an American neoclassical new-age music ensemble founded and directed by percussionist/composer Chip Davis in 1974. The group is known primarily for its ''Fresh Aire'' series of albums, which blend classical music with ele ...

Lady Antebellum Lady A (formerly known as Lady Antebellum) is an American country music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006. The group is composed of Hillary Scott (lead and background vocals), Charles Kelley (lead and background vocals, guitar) ...

, and

Third Day Third Day was a Christian rock band formed in Marietta, Georgia during the 1990s. The band was founded by lead singer Mac Powell, guitarist Mark Lee (both of whom were the only constant members) and Billy Wilkins. Drummer David Carr was the ...

. In 2017 it hosted the

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

/ Intersport-produced College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championship leading up to that year's Final Four at

Glendale Glendale is the anglicised version of the Gaelic Gleann Dail, which means ''valley of fertile, low-lying arable land''. It may refer to: Places Australia * Glendale, New South Wales ** Stockland Glendale, a shopping centre *Glendale, Queensland, ...

University of Phoenix Stadium A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

. On October 14, 2012, the arena hosted

TNA Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promoti ...

's 8th annual premier

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of the year, Bound for Glory.

Facility information

There are 7,000 seats in the arena. There are also five concession stands (including three pizza ovens), 17 restrooms, four locker rooms, two escalators, two elevators, two grand staircases and a total of four HD video boards and one high resolution digital ribbon board. The state-of-the-art video boards were installed by Atlanta-based Innovation Sports Marketing. The main video board measures tall by wide and weighs around three tons. Design for the facility was done by

360 Architecture 360 Architecture was an American architectural practice acquired by HOK in 2015. The firm provided services for a range of project types including corporate headquarters and commercial office buildings, sports arenas, stadiums and ballparks, mun ...

and Tempe-based Architekton. When construction of the arena was complete there were a total of 255,000 man hours, 8,870 yards of concrete, 41,000 bricks, 793 tons of structural steel, of electrical wiring, and 2,300 light fixtures. Notable features include large windows providing natural light, ceiling beams signed by GCU employees and students, a vault of Bibles buried at center court and an outdoor balcony with views of the Camelback Road campus. There are only 42 steps from event level to concourse level to ensure that every seat in the arena is a good one.

Expansion

Just over three years after opening, GCU Arena closed on March 3, 2014, to undergo a massive remodel. With the quicker-than-anticipated jump to Division I athletics for the

Grand Canyon Antelopes The Grand Canyon Antelopes (more commonly referred to as the Lopes) are the 21 athletic teams representing Grand Canyon University, located in Phoenix, Arizona. Most of the university's athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division I level in the ...

athletic programs, the school announced the expansion of the arena from a capacity of 5,000 to 7,000 seats. The growth of the arena was primarily intended to incorporate adequate seating for the men's basketball games and for larger concerts. Arizona sports icon

Jerry Colangelo Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona ...

, who is closely connected with the athletic program, was involved in the expansion process, stating: "If GCU knew when the building went up just a couple of years ago that they would be in Division I as quickly as we have, it would have been built bigger." After a proposed finish date of October 17, the Arena opened nearly six weeks ahead of schedule on August 23 for a

concert as a part of the school's 2014 Welcome Weekend. Final changes included an upper-deck seating area, a movable track for the high definition video display, and a new basketball floor.

References

External links