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) 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 spectator ...

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. 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 Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...

. 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 ...

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 and ...

, which is now a subsidiary of

Marathon Petroleum Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an American petroleum refining, marketing, and transportation company headquartered in Findlay, Ohio. The company was a wholly owned subsidiary of Marathon Oil until a corporate spin-off in 2011. Following i ...

. 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. 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