Idaho Central Arena (originally Bank of America Centre, formerly Qwest Arena and CenturyLink Arena) is a multi-purpose
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 spectator ...
in the
western United States
The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the We ...
, located in
Boise, Idaho
Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown ar ...
. Its
seating capacity
Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile tha ...
is 5,002 for
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 ...
, 5,300 for
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 ...
, 5,732 for end-stage
concerts
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide vari ...
, 6,400 for
boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
, and up to 6,800 for center-stage concerts. With 4,508 permanent seats, it was built for $50 million. In downtown Boise, its street level
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...
is approximately above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...
.
Opened , it has been the home arena of the
Idaho Steelheads
The Idaho Steelheads are an American professional minor league ice hockey team based in Boise, Idaho, and a member of the ECHL. The Steelheads play in the Mountain Division of the ECHL's Western Conference since the 2016–17 season. In 1996, t ...
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 ...
since 1997. Other tenants include the
Boise Stallions
The Boise Stallions are a defunct indoor football team from Boise, Idaho. They were a charter member of the Indoor Professional Football League. They originally began as the Idaho Stallions. Throughout their three seasons, 20 year old Larry Sto ...
of the
Indoor Professional Football League in 2000 and 2001, the
Idaho Stampede of the
NBA Development League
The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...
from 2005 to 2016, and the
Boise Burn of the
af2 from 2007 to 2009.
Originally the Bank of America Centre, it became Qwest Arena in 2005.
With
CenturyLink's takeover of
Qwest Communications in 2011, the venue was renamed on August 18 that same year.
On September 16, 2020,
Idaho Central Credit Union
Idaho Central Credit Union (ICCU) is a state-chartered credit union in the western United States, headquartered in Chubbuck, Idaho, adjacent to Pocatello. ICCU is the largest credit union in Idaho, with numerous branches serving over 500,000 me ...
purchased the naming rights, giving the building its current title.
Features
The arena features 39 corporate suites, 1,100 Club Premiere seats, standing room space for 200, The Zone restaurant (overlooking the arena), as well as a
Blimpie
Blimpie International, Inc., doing business as Blimpie (stylized as BLiMPiE), is an American submarine sandwich chain based in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was founded in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1964, by three friends, and has since endured three ow ...
franchise among the nine concession stands. The arena is physically connected to the Grove Hotel at the corner of Front Street and Capitol Boulevard; the main entrance is from the Grove Plaza. There are two scoreboards and a Daktronics ProStar videoboard.
The Grove Hotel has of meeting and convention space in addition to the of arena floor space.
Events
Idaho Central Arena hosted the 2006
CBA All-Star Game (while the Idaho Stampede were still part of the CBA) and the 2007
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 ...
All-Star Game.
Other events hosted in the facility include concerts, trade shows, conventions, ice shows and various other sporting events, including professional wrestling, MMA, and the
Treasure Valley Rollergirls roller derby
Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States.
Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...
squad.
On July 14, 2018, the arena was host to
UFC Fight Night 133
''UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Ivanov'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 133'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on July 14, 2018 at CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho, United States. ...
, the MMA promotion's first event held in Idaho.
Idaho Central Arena has hosted two NBA D-League Showcases in 2008 and 2010. Each Showcase had all NBA D-League teams play for 4 days, and showed their talent in front of National TV (NBA TV) and had scouts all around the country.
On September 18, 2017, the
Big Sky Conference
The Big Sky Conference (BSC) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I with football competing in the Football Championship Subdivision. Member institutions are located in the western United States in the eig ...
announced that its
men's and
women's basketball tournaments would move to Idaho Central Arena for three years, starting in 2019. The previous three years (
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...
–
18) were held in
Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is th ...
.
Concerts
Many artists and bands have performed at the venue, including
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...
,
Godsmack,
Five Finger Death Punch
Five Finger Death Punch, also abbreviated as 5FDP or FFDP, is an American heavy metal band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2005. The band originally consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Ivan Moody, rhythm guitarist Zoltan Bathory, lead g ...
,
Shinedown,
Skillet
A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab han ...
,
Luke Bryan
Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country singer, songwriter, and television personality. He began his music career writing songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington before signing with Capitol Nashville in 2007. ...
,
Yes
Yes or YES may refer to:
* An affirmative particle in the English language; see yes and no
Education
* YES Prep Public Schools, Houston, Texas, US
* YES (Your Extraordinary Saturday), a learning program from the Minnesota Institute for Talent ...
,
Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band, and
Rise Against
Rise Against is an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. The group's current line-up comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Tim McIlrath, lead guitarist Zach Blair, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes. Rooted in hardc ...
.
References
External links
Idaho Central ArenaIdahoSteelheads.com
{{D-League Arenas
Sports in Boise, Idaho
Indoor ice hockey venues in the United States
Idaho Stampede
Arena football venues
Convention centers in Idaho
Defunct NBA G League venues
Sports venues in Idaho
Lumen Technologies
Buildings and structures in Boise, Idaho
Tourist attractions in Boise, Idaho
Ice hockey in Idaho
Sports venues completed in 1997
1997 establishments in Idaho
Continental Basketball Association venues
Indoor arenas in Idaho