Hertz Arena is a 7,181-seat multi-purpose arena in

Estero, Florida Estero is a village in Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,939. During the 2010 census, Estero was an unincorporated community, or census-designated place, the population at that time was 22,612. Est ...

, which is located between Miromar Lakes, Florida and Bonita Springs, Florida. The arena opened in November 1998 and serves as the home of the

Florida Everblades The Florida Everblades are a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Estero, Florida, in the Cape Coral-Fort Myers metropolitan area. They play in the ECHL and are affiliated with the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (N ...

of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

History

The arena was first named Everblades Arena in 1998 after the hockey team that plays there.

TECO Energy TECO Energy Inc. is an energy-related holding company based in Tampa, Florida, and a subsidiary of Emera Incorporated. TECO Energy has several subsidiaries: Tampa Electric Company, which provides electricity to the Tampa Bay Area and parts of C ...

was the first company to obtain the naming rights to the building, changing the name to TECO Arena. In 2004, TECO Energy decided they were no longer interested in holding the naming rights. Germain Motor Company bought the rights, and in 2004 the venue was renamed to Germain Arena. This same company, an automobile dealership with locations in Florida, Arkansas, and Ohio, also held the naming rights to the

Germain Amphitheater The Germain Amphitheater (originally the Polaris Amphitheater) was a 20,000-seat outdoor entertainment venue located in Columbus, Ohio, near the suburb of Westerville. The venue opened as part of a large development venture off of Interstate High ...

in Columbus, Ohio. In September 2018,

The Hertz Corporation The Hertz Corporation is an American car rental company based in Estero, Florida. The company operates its namesake Hertz brand, along with the brands Dollar Rent A Car, Firefly Car Rental and Thrifty Car Rental. It is one of the three big re ...

bought the naming rights for the arena and it was renamed Hertz Arena on October 1. The company petitioned the city to repaint the arena bright yellow with black accents to match their branding. In August 2019, the Hoffmann family entered into an agreement to purchase both the arena and hockey team as part of their plan to expand the entertainment segment in Southwest Florida.

Tenants

The arena has been used as a multipurpose venue, primarily hosting the

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

team. It was also the home for the

Florida Flame The Florida Flame was an NBA Development League team based in Fort Myers, Florida. The Flame announced they would temporarily shut down operations during 2006–07, due to not having a home arena in which to play. The team maintained its league m ...

NBA Development League team, the

Florida Firecats The Florida Firecats were a professional arena football team based in Estero, Florida. They played in the AF2, the Arena Football League's developmental league, from 2001 to 2009. They did not join the AFL following the leagues' reorganization i ...

Florida Tarpons The Florida Tarpons were a professional indoor football team based in Lakeland, Florida, out of the RP Funding Center. Originally established in Estero, Florida, and playing out of Germain Arena, they began play in 2012 as an expansion team of t ...

and Gulf Coast Fire indoor football teams. Additionally, the venue has hosted various concerts, circuses, boxing,

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...

events,

AEW AEW or aew may refer to: * Airborne early warning, airborne radar system for detecting aircraft * Aerosvit Airlines, an airline based in Kyiv, Ukraine (ICAO airline designator: AEW) * AEW Capital Management, a property investment management company ...

shows,

Total Nonstop Action 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 promo ...

shows,

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vari ...

shows,

Professional Bull Riders The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the U.S., PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012. In 2013, the ...

events and family shows. The arena is also home to the

Florida Gulf Coast University Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) is a public university in Lee County, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is its second youngest member. The university was established on May 3, 1991, and is accredited by the ...

Eagles club hockey team of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA). In March 2006 and March 2010, the facility hosted the Division 3 ACHA National Championships and in March 2008 the Division 2 ACHA National Championships. The arena has also hosted a college hockey tournament, originally known as the Everblades College Classic and then the

Florida College Hockey Classic The Florida College Hockey Classic (formerly the Everblades College Classic) was a National Collegiate Athletic Association, college NCAA Division I#Division I in ice hockey, Division I men's College ice hockey, ice hockey tournament played annual ...

. It was a four-team tournament was hosted by the University of Maine Black Bears and the Cornell University Big Red, and two other invited teams. The winner was awarded the

Ned Harkness Nevin Donald Harkness (September 19, 1919 – September 19, 2008) was an NCAA head coach of ice hockey and lacrosse at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Cornell University and of ice hockey at Union College. Harkness was also head coach ...

Cup.Brush Makes Vision Into Reality In Florida
ECHL.com October 22, 2007 On March 9, 2022, the arena had its first televised wrestling event as All Elite Wrestling (AEW) had its tapings of '' Dynamite'' and '' Rampage'', marking AEW's debut to the Southwest Florida market.

References

External links

* {{authority control 1998 establishments in Florida Arena football venues Basketball venues in Florida Boxing venues in the United States Buildings and structures in Lee County, Florida College ice hockey venues in the United States Defunct NBA G League venues Florida Flame Indoor arenas in Florida Indoor ice hockey venues in Florida Mixed martial arts venues in Florida Music venues in Florida Sports venues completed in 1998 Sports venues in Florida