Barclays Center ( ) is a multi-purpose
indoor arena
An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...
in the New York City
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
of
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
. The arena is home to the
Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...
of the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
and the
New York Liberty
The New York Liberty are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Liberty compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Eastern Confer ...
of the
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan.
The WNBA w ...
.
The arena also hosts concerts, conventions and other sporting and entertainment events.
The arena is part of a $4.9 billion future business and residential complex now known as
Pacific Park. The site is at
Atlantic Avenue, next to the renamed
Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center subway station on the , as well as directly above the
LIRR's
Atlantic Terminal.
The arena, proposed in 2004 when real estate developer
Bruce Ratner purchased the Nets for $300 million as the first step of the process to build a new home for the team,
experienced significant hurdles during its development. Its use of
eminent domain
Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
and its potential environmental impact
brought massive community resistance, especially as residential buildings and businesses such as the
Ward Bakery and Freddy's bar were to be demolished and large amounts of public subsidies were used, which led to multiple lawsuits. The
Great Recession
The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009. also caused financing for the project to dry up. As a result, construction was delayed until 2010, with no secure funding for the project having been allotted.
Groundbreaking
Groundbreaking, also known as cutting, sod-cutting, turning the first sod, turf-cutting, or a sod-turning ceremony, is a traditional ceremony in many cultures that celebrates the first day of construction for a building or other project. Such cer ...
for construction occurred on March 11, 2010, and the arena opened on September 21, 2012, which some 200 protesters also attended.
Its first event was a
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
concert on September 28, 2012.
The arena is owned by the State of New York's
Empire State Development
Empire State Development (ESD) is the umbrella organization for New York's two principal economic development public-benefit corporations, the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC) and the New York Job Development Authority (JDA). ...
authority through a public entity named the Brooklyn Arena Local Development Corporation.
It is leased by Brooklyn Event Center LLC, owned by Brooklyn Nets owner
Joseph Tsai, with operations (and associated revenue) managed by Tsai's BSE Global.
History
The arena was conceived by
Bruce Ratner of real estate developer
Forest City Ratner Companies, the New York division of
Forest City Enterprises that Ratner founded. He acquired the New Jersey Nets basketball team in 2004 for $300 million
[ (he has since sold most of his shares to continue funding the project) for the purpose of moving them to the Pacific Park development on Brooklyn's Prospect Heights play in the arena that would be the centerpiece of the Pacific Park commercial and residential redevelopment project.] The move had marked the return of major league sports to Brooklyn, which had been absent since the departure of the Dodgers to Los Angeles in 1957. Coincidentally, the original proposal for a domed stadium for the Brooklyn Dodgers was just north of the Pacific Park Brooklyn site, where the Atlantic Terminal Mall, also owned by Forest City Ratner Companies, is located.
The arena was initially projected to open in 2006, with the rest of the Pacific Park Brooklyn complex to follow. However, controversies involving local residents, the use of eminent domain
Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
, potential environmental impact, lack of continued public financing, as well as a major economic downturn delayed the project. Due to these legal and financial troubles, the development deal seemed headed towards failure or collapse. Frank Gehry
Frank Owen Gehry ( ; ; born February 28, 1929) is a Canadian-American architect and designer. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become attractions.
Gehry rose to prominence in th ...
, an architect involved in the project's initial designs said, in March 2009, "I don't think it is going to happen,"[ and Ratner at one point explored selling the team. The ]New York Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
ruled in favor of Ratner on May 16, 2009. Opponents appealed the court decision. A hearing for the appeal was scheduled for October 14, 2009, with a decision to be issued no sooner than November 25.
Russian businessman Mikhail Prokhorov
Mikhail Dmitrievich Prokhorov (; born 3 May 1965) is a Russian-Israeli oligarch and politician. He was also an owner of the Brooklyn Nets.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Prokhorov obtained Russian state-owned metals assets at prices ...
agreed to a $200 million deal on September 23, 2009, to become a principal owner of the Nets and a key investor in the Brooklyn arena.
The Nets played two preseason games at Prudential Center
Prudential Center is a multipurpose indoor arena in the central business district of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Opened in 2007, it is the home of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL), the New York Sirens of the Pro ...
in October 2009. The two preseason games were successful, and a deal that would have the Nets play at the Prudential Center for the 2010–11 and 2011–12 NBA seasons became more likely. Negotiations nearly fell apart, when the New Jersey Sports and Exhibition Authority refused to release the Nets from their lease at Izod. Negotiations resumed, and on February 18, 2010, the Nets finalized a deal that would move them to the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...
until Barclays Center opened.
The New York Court of Appeals
The New York Court of Appeals is the supreme court, highest court in the Judiciary of New York (state), Unified Court System of the New York (state), State of New York. It consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeal ...
ruled in favor of the state using eminent domain for the project on November 24, 2009. Empire State Development Corporation
Empire State Development (ESD) is the umbrella organization for New York's two principal economic development public-benefit corporations, the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC) and the New York Job Development Authority (JDA). ...
Vice President Warner Johnston indicated that the agency was committed to seeing the project completed and said "we can now move forward with development."
Another potential roadblock to this development resulted from the Appellate Court's negative decision regarding a similar eminent domain case, brought against Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
. This landmark case could have given new life to the case being brought by the community group Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn (DDDB).
However, on March 1, 2010, Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Abraham Gerges struck down a challenge by property owners, regarding the state's use of eminent domain, which allowed the private property to be condemned. Groundbreaking for the project occurred on March 11, 2010.
The first concrete was poured into Barclays Center's foundation on June 29, 2010. The arena began vertical construction on November 23, 2010, with the erection of the first steel piece. The arena topped out on January 12, 2012, and was opened to the public on September 21, 2012.
Barclays Bank agreed to a 20-year naming rights agreement for $400 million in 2007. However, two years later, due to the slump in the economy the deal was renegotiated to $200 million.
The New York Islanders
The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (N ...
of the National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
(NHL) announced on October 24, 2012, that the franchise would move to Barclays Center in 2015 after the expiration of their lease at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island. The venue is situated approximately east of the eastern limits of the borough of Queens in New York City, a ...
, which the team had called home since its inception in 1972. The deal did not require the involvement of the New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...
, as the Islanders' agreement with the Rangers to share the New York area allows them to play their home games anywhere on Long Island, including the two city boroughs on the island, Brooklyn and Queens
Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
. While Barclays Center was conceived as a multipurpose arena that could accommodate the Nets and an NHL team, it was built mainly for basketball. While it can accommodate an NHL-size rink, the scoreboard was off-centered above the blue line that is closer to the arena's southeast end. Capacity for hockey is 15,795, the second-smallest in the league (behind Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...
's Canada Life Centre). The seating arrangement for hockey is asymmetrical. There are only three rows of permanent seating on the northwest end of the arena, and at least 416 seats were not sold at all due to poor sight lines. As a result of the signing of the lease, the two KHL
The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; ) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs based in Russia (20), Belarus (1), Kazakhstan (1), and China (1) for a total of 23 clubs.
It was considered in ...
games scheduled to be played in the arena on January 20 and 21, 2013 between Dynamo Moscow and SKA St. Petersburg were moved back to their teams' home venues. As part of the deal, the management of the Barclays Center took over the business operations of the Islanders when the team moved to Brooklyn, though Charles Wang remained principal owner and continued to oversee hockey operations. This arrangement continued after Wang sold controlling interest in the Islanders to Jon Ledecky and Scott D. Malkin. Business operations were returned to the Islanders following the 2018–19 season.
According to ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' magazine, Barclays Center passed Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
as the highest-grossing venue in the US for concerts and family shows, not counting sports events. That statistic was based on ticket sales between November 1, 2012, and May 31, 2013. On February 24, 2015, an ironworker was killed when four joists fell on him as he was helping to install the arena's green roof.
Poor reception of the arena's quality as a hockey venue affected the Islanders' average attendance in comparison to Nassau Coliseum, which fell to an NHL low of 12,059 (the arena itself is also the second-smallest in the league). The team began to seek an exit from Barclays, although NHL officials judged that the Coliseum (even with its recent renovations) would not be suitable as a full-time venue, as it lacked amenities common in new facilities. On June 21, 2018, the Islanders announced that they would begin to play a portion of their home schedule at Nassau Coliseum until the completion of UBS Arena.
On September 18, 2019, Joe Tsai completed the acquisition of full ownership of the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center. With the closing of the transaction, Tsai became NBA Governor of the Nets and its affiliates and Chairman of Barclays Center. Additionally, on September 18, 2019, media and sports executive David Levy was named Chief Executive Officer of the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center by Joe Tsai. Tsai also purchased the WNBA's New York Liberty
The New York Liberty are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Liberty compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Eastern Confer ...
in 2019 and relocated the team to the Barclays Center in 2020. For Liberty games, ticket sales will initially be capped at about 8,000.
In July 2021, it was announced that as part of a deal with the Nets and BSE Global, SeatGeek would take over ticketing duties for Barclays Center events beginning with the 2021-22 Brooklyn Nets season, ending the arena's relationship with Ticketmaster
Ticketmaster Entertainment, LLC is an American ticket sales and distribution company based in Beverly Hills, California, with operations in many countries around the world. In 2010, it merged with Live Nation under the name Live Nation Ente ...
and breaking Ticketmaster's monopoly over ticketing for New York's major arenas. In January 2023, it was announced that the deal would end earlier than expected and that Ticketmaster would return to handle ticketing for Barclays Center events starting with the 2023 New York Liberty season, as well for events whose tickets went on sale on or after January 14, 2023. Sources later told ''Billboard'' that BSE Global ended the deal with SeatGeek after encountering multiple technical issues, which led to lower than expected ticket sales for concerts at the arena.
Financing
The arena is formally owned by the Brooklyn Arena Local Development Corporation, a public entity. It is leased to private entity Brooklyn Events Center, LLC for $1.00. Being publicly owned, the financing of the stadium was eligible for tax-exempt bonds, which were issued in 2009 for a total of $510,999,996.50.
Design
Barclays Center was designed by the architect firm SHoP Architects
SHoP Architects is an architecture firm in Lower Manhattan, New York City, with projects located on five continents. Led by four principals, the firm provides services to residences, commercial buildings, schools and cultural institutions, as we ...
. Ellerbe Becket/AECOM served as the project Architect of record
Architect of record is the architect or architecture firm whose name appears on a building permit issued for a specific project on which that architect or firm performed services.
Issuance of building permits
Building permits are issued by a ...
.
Initial concepts for the area were designed by Frank Gehry
Frank Owen Gehry ( ; ; born February 28, 1929) is a Canadian-American architect and designer. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become attractions.
Gehry rose to prominence in th ...
, whose design proposed a rooftop park (open only to residents of the Atlantic Yards complex) ringed by an open-air running track and capable of doubling as an ice skating rink in winter with panoramic
A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography (panoramic photography), film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word ...
, year-round views of Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. The famed architect's tallest tower, called Miss Brooklyn at 620 feet, was also part of this plan.[ Gehry's plans carried a projected cost of $1 billion.] Forest City Ratner unveiled a scaled-back version of the project in February 2008 reducing Miss Brooklyn's size 40%, and making it shorter.[ Another redesign unveiled just over two months later scrapped Miss Brooklyn entirely, and in January 2009, the developer started "value engineering" the arena design, cutting its budget even more. In September 2009 the Becket/SHoP proposal with a projected cost (initially) of $800 million (ultimately itself revised to $1 billion) was unveiled.][
Externally, the arena's shape features three articulated bands, with a glass curtain wall covered by a "latticework" composed of 12,000 preweathered steel panels engineered and constructed by ASI Limited/SHoP Construction meant to evoke the image of Brooklyn's brownstones. A oculus extends over a section of the plaza outside of the main arena entrance with an irregularly shaped display screen looping the interior face of the oculus.] The arena floor's location below grade allows people in the plaza to view the scoreboard.
There are two sports lighting systems inside the arena bowl: one for the Nets and one for everyone else. The Nets lighting creates a theater-like effect where the court pops like a stage while the rest of the arena goes dark. Additionally, the Nets basketball court has featured a herringbone pattern
The herringbone pattern is an arrangement of rectangles used for floor tilings and road pavement, so named for a fancied resemblance to the bones of a fish such as a herring.
The blocks can be rectangles or parallelograms. The block edge lengt ...
since the arena opened in 2012. The basketball courts used for other events at the arena generally does not feature this pattern.
Unlike most other urban venues in the US, Barclays Center has no dedicated parking lot; however, it is easily accessible by subway, bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used ...
, and railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
. To accommodate entry to the facility, the arena's entrance plaza features a $76 million transit connection hub that serves as the plaza's focal point. The transit structure connects with the refurbished Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center subway station, whose renovation was designed by New York City firm Stantec.
The original plan promised indoor room for bicycles, but the plan was scrapped before the arena's opening with outdoor racks for 400 bicycles, which were eventually taken away. The Empire State Development corporation also promised spots for 550 cars eventually, next to the arena.
Because of the constrained site, there are only two truck and bus entrances into the building. They consist of two side-by-side capacity elevators which lower vehicles below street grade into a loading dock area. Vehicles roll out onto an enormous turntable which rotates them into position opposite one of four loading docks arrayed around the turntable.
Artwork
The building features the mural ''Diary of Brooklyn'' by painter José Parlá, which measures wide and tall. According to Parlá, the painting is all about language; the painting contains words and phrases such as "immigration," "Brooklyn is" and "Big Daddy Kane." The piece was commissioned in 2012 and took six months to complete.
Naming rights
On January 18, 2007, it was announced that the arena would be called Barclays Center, after London-based banking group Barclays
Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...
. It was reported that the banking and financial services company agreed to pay the team $400 million over the next 20 years for the naming rights
Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...
of their Brooklyn home, eclipsing the previous record for naming rights to an American indoor arena, set by Royal Philips Electronics in 1999, for $185 million over 20 years for Philips Arena
State Farm Arena is a Multi-purpose stadium, multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It also served as home to the Atlanta Thrasher ...
in Atlanta. However, the rights were renegotiated by the end of 2009, and are somewhat more than $200 million. Barclays does not have any retail banks in the US nor does it have its own ATMs in the arena.
Accessibility and transportation
Barclays Center is located next to Atlantic Terminal, which services the Long Island Rail Road
The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...
's Atlantic Branch. Barclays Center is also accessible via the New York City Subway
The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...
, via the , which stop at Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center.
MTA Regional Bus Operations
MTA Regional Bus Operations (RBO) is the Public transport bus service, bus operations division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City. The MTA operates local, limited-stop, express, and Select Bus Service (bus rapid transit ...
service is provided by , and buses.
Notable events
Basketball
The first NBA basketball game played at the new arena was an NBA preseason game between the Nets and the Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...
on October 15, 2012.
The first regular-season NBA game at the Barclays Center took place on November 3, 2012, when the Nets beat the visiting Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...
107–100. The originally scheduled season opener home game was supposed to take place on November 1 against now-cross town rivals the New York Knicks
The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...
, in what was planned to be a historic event; however, the game was canceled by NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...
due to mass transportation outages and a shortage of available police caused by Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
.
The venue hosted the NBA draft
The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...
starting with the 2013 event on June 27, 2013 and it has been ever since, except the 2020 event was held via videoconferencing. In addition to that, they have also hosted the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities in 2015
2015 was designated by the United Nations as:
* International Year of Light
* International Year of Soil __TOC__
Events
January
* January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
.
Barclays Center was also the home for the Long Island Nets
The Long Island Nets are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Uniondale, New York, and are affiliated with the Brooklyn Nets. The team plays its home games at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Nassau County ...
of the NBA Development League, now the NBA G League
The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...
, during the 2016–17 season while the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island. The venue is situated approximately east of the eastern limits of the borough of Queens in New York City, a ...
was being renovated for the 2017–18 season.
The first WNBA game held at Barclays Center came on May 14, 2021, when the host New York Liberty defeated the Indiana Fever
The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...
90–87. The arena hosted three games of the 2024 WNBA Finals, in which the Liberty won its first WNBA championship at home following a 67–62 win in Game 5 against the Minnesota Lynx
The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Lynx compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference. The team won the WNBA ...
.
Due to the upcoming 2024 NBA draft
The 2024 NBA draft was the 78th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft. Unlike recent years, the 2024 draft took place over two nights. This was the first NBA draft to be held on multiple nights since the draft ...
, the Liberty's Commissioner's Cup championship game against the Lynx was moved from Barclays Center to UBS Arena.
College basketball
Since its opening, the center has hosted a number of college basketball events. Kentucky
Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
and Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
signed multi-year agreements to play games at the arena after competing head-to-head in 2012. The arena hosts three early-season basketball tournaments: Barclays Center Classic, Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, and Legends Classic. The arena has also been an alternate home arena for the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds men's basketball
The LIU Sharks men's basketball team represents Long Island University in NCAA Division I basketball competition. They play their home games at their Brooklyn Campus in the Steinberg Wellness Center and Barclays Center, formerly known as the W ...
(now LIU Sharks men's basketball) team since 2012.
The Atlantic 10 Conference
The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. The A-10's member schools are located most ...
announced Barclays Center as the new home of the conference's men's basketball tournament beginning in 2013. The Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...
announced the 2017 and 2018 ACC men's basketball tournament to be hosted at the Barclays Center. This is a break of tradition from being hosted at the "unofficial" home of the tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the List of municipalitie ...
where it is usually held. As part of a three-way agreement with Barclays and the ACC, the A-10 returned its men's basketball championship to the Barclays Center in 2019, 2020 (which was cancelled after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and 2021 (which was moved to campus sites due the ongoing pandemic). The arena and the A-10 agreed to extend the partnership for the 2023 and 2024 championships.
In 2016, Barclays Center hosted games in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as March Madness, or The Big Dance, is a single-elimination tournament played in the United States to determine the men's college basketball national champion of the NCAA Division I, Di ...
for the first time. Notable moments at the Brooklyn site include a tip-in at the buzzer by Adam Woodbury to lift the Iowa Hawkeyes past Temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...
in overtime, 14th-seeded Stephen F. Austin's upset win over 3rd-seeded West Virginia
West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...
, and Rex Plfueger's last-second tip-in to help Notre Dame avert an upset bid by Stephen F. Austin in the second round. The arena was scheduled to host an NCAA Regional in 2021; however, the NCAA moved all games of the 2021 championship to the Indianapolis area. The arena and the Atlantic 10 will serve as a First and Second Round site for the 2024 NCAA tournament.
Hockey
The New York Islanders
The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (N ...
moved from Nassau Coliseum
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island. The venue is situated approximately east of the eastern limits of the Borough (New York City), borough of Q ...
to Barclays Center before the 2015–16 NHL season
The 2015–16 NHL season was the 99th season of operation (98th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). Thirty teams competed in 82-game regular season schedules from October 7, 2015 to April 10, 2016.
The 2016 Stanley Cup playoff ...
. The Islanders played the first NHL hockey game at Barclays Center in a preseason game on September 21, 2013, losing to the New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The club w ...
3–0 in front of a crowd of 14,689. The first goal in the arena's history was scored by Jacob Josefson of the New Jersey Devils. An Islanders game was scheduled for the previous preseason but was canceled due to the 2012–13 NHL lockout
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to ...
. The Islanders and Devils played again on September 26, 2014. This time, the Islanders defeated New Jersey 3–2 in a shootout. The first goal in Islanders Brooklyn history was scored in the first period on a power play (and a delayed penalty call) by defenseman Ryan Pulock.
The first regular-season game was played on October 9, 2015, against the 2015 Stanley Cup
The 2015 Stanley Cup Finals was the Stanley Cup Finals, championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) season, and the culmination of the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference champion 2014–15 ...
champions the Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...
, who won the game 3–2 in overtime. This was the sixth NHL game at Barclays Center, following five total preseason contests (three in 2015), and one Islanders rookie scrimmage. The first NHL regular-season goal scored in the Barclays Center was a shorthanded goal by Artem Anisimov for the Blackhawks in the first period, while John Tavares scored in the second period and was the first Islander to do so.
The first Stanley Cup playoffs
The Stanley Cup playoffs () is the annual elimination tournament to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, and the league champion of the National Hockey League (NHL). The four-round, best-of-seven tournament is held after the NHL's regular s ...
game at Barclays Center was held on April 17, 2016, when the Islanders defeated the Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Panthers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team initially played it ...
4–3 in game three of the first-round series between the two teams. Seven nights later, the arena hosted game 6 of the series, which turned out to be the longest home game in Islanders history. In that game, the Islanders were trailing 1–0 when Tavares scored the game-tying goal with 53.2 seconds left in regulation; he would score the series-clinching goal in double overtime to give the Islanders their first playoff series win since 1993.
The Islanders moved to the newly constructed UBS Arena in 2021–22 season. New York State governor Andrew Cuomo
Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...
announced on February 29, 2020, that the Islanders would play all home games in the 2020–21 season at Nassau Coliseum
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (or simply the Nassau Coliseum) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, on Long Island. The venue is situated approximately east of the eastern limits of the Borough (New York City), borough of Q ...
, their former home. It was also announced that the Islanders would play all of their home playoff games during the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs
The 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 2019–20 season. The playoffs began on August 1, 2020, and concluded on September 28, 2020, with the Tampa Bay Lightning winning their second ...
at Nassau Coliseum, meaning that their final game played at the Barclays Center was scheduled to be on March 22, 2020, against the Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...
. However, all NHL games were postponed on March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in North America
The first cases of the COVID-19 pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in North America were reported in the United States on 23 January 2020. Cases were reported in all North American countries after Saint Kitts and Nevis confirmed a case on 2 ...
. At that point in time, the Islanders had six home games left in the regular season, two in Brooklyn and four in Nassau County, as well as six road games, and were one point shy of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. While the Nassau Coliseum was closed indefinitely in June 2020, and the Islanders were reported to return to Barclays Center for the 2020–21 season if the Coliseum remained unavailable, a new leaseholder allowed the Islanders to play their 2020–21 home games there, meaning the final game at Barclays Center was March 3, 2020, a 6–2 loss against the Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...
.
Boxing
Several boxing matches have taken place in the arena, including Danny Garcia vs. Zab Judah and Paulie Malignaggi vs. Adrien Broner in 2013, Ruslan Provodnikov vs. Chris Algieri in 2014, Deontay Wilder vs. Robert Helenius in 2022, and Devin Haney vs. Ryan Garcia in 2024.
Mixed martial arts
The venue hosted UFC 208: Holm vs. de Randamie on February 11, 2017, and it hosted UFC 223: Khabib vs. Iaquinta on April 7, 2018, and UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw on January 19, 2019.
Gymnastics
On November 6, 2016, the arena hosted the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions.
Music
In addition to many concerts from various musical acts, the center hosted the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2013 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 25, 2013, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Marking the 30th installment of the award show, they were the first to be held in New York City not to use a venue within the borough of ...
on August 25, 2013, bringing the show to a New York City borough other than Manhattan for the first time. The 2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
ceremony was supposed to take place in Barclays Center but due to COVID-19 restrictions, the ceremony took place outdoors in New York City instead. The show would later take place there for the 2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
ceremony.
Professional wrestling
The arena has also hosted many WWE wrestling events since the arena's opening. The first show held at the venue was the '' Tables, Ladders, and Chairs'' PPV event which famously held the first match for The Shield (Roman Reigns
Leati Joseph Anoaʻi ( ; born May 25, 1985), better known by his ring name Roman Reigns, is an American professional wrestler and former gridiron football, football player. As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE , where he performs on the Sm ...
, Seth Rollins
Colby Daniel Lopez (born May 28, 1986), better known by the ring name Seth Rollins, is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand and ...
, and Dean Ambrose). They would continue to hold several ''WWE Raw
''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It currently airs Live television, live every Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on Netflix. The show fe ...
'' episodes including its 25th anniversary episode in January 2018. In August 2015, Barclays Center hosted SummerSlam
SummerSlam is a professional wrestling event, produced annually since 1988 by the world's largest professional wrestling promotion, WWE. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's second biggest event of the year behind th ...
along with NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn the night before and a post-SummerSlam ''Raw'' the next day, resulting in three consecutive nights of sellouts. They would continue annual weekends of SummerSlam events for the next three years with the inclusion of a post-SummerSlam '' SmackDown Live'' broadcast to the events.
The arena held another weekend of events in April 2019 for WrestleMania 35. This weekend included NXT TakeOver: New York, the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame
The WWE Hall of Fame is a List of halls and walks of fame, hall of fame which honors professional wrestlers and professional wrestling personalities maintained by WWE. Originally known as the "WWF Hall of Fame", it was created in 1993 when An ...
induction ceremony, along with post-WrestleMania editions of ''Raw'' and ''SmackDown Live''. In addition, the arena hosted Survivor Series
Survivor Series, branded as Survivor Series: WarGames since 2022, is a professional wrestling event produced annually since 1987 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Held in November generally the week of Thanksgiving ( ...
on November 21, 2021, followed by ''Raw'' the next day.
Esports
The arena has hosted ESL One New York in October 2016, September 2017, September 2018, and September 2019.
In May 2018, Blizzard Entertainment
Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher based in Irvine, California, and a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard. Originally founded in 1991, the company is best known for producing the h ...
announced the Grand Finals for the inaugural season of the Overwatch League
The Overwatch League (OWL) was a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'', produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. From 2018 to 2023, the Overwatch League followed the model of other traditional North American prof ...
would be held at Barclays Center. The event was held on July 27–28, 2018.
Bull riding
In 2024, Barclays Center became the home venue of the New York Mavericks; one of ten bull riding teams of the Professional Bull Riders
The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It is the largest bull riding league in the world, sanctioning hundreds of events every yea ...
(PBR) Team Series held in the summer and autumn. Each team has their own hometown event. There are also two "neutral site" events during the season, which culminates at T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada, United States. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International ...
in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
, in October to determine the PBR Team Series Champion.
In 2025, the New York Mavericks changed their home venue to UBS Arena.
Commencement ceremonies
Barclays Center became the location of Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...
's annual commencement venue ever since 2017 when U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders
Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...
returned to his hometown and delivered the address, except 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and had to be held virtually.
23 May, 2025, marks the 100th annual commencement of Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...
and it's to be held at Barclays Center.
Issues
Legal actions
During its construction, the center was the source of a number of controversies involving local residents, the use of eminent domain
Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
, potential environmental impact, lack of continued public financing, as well as a major economic downturn that delayed the project. The New York Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
ruled in favor of Ratner on May 16, 2009. Opponents appealed the court decision, and a hearing for the appeal was scheduled for October 14, 2009, with a decision to be issued no sooner than November 25.
On November 24, 2009, the New York Court of Appeals
The New York Court of Appeals is the supreme court, highest court in the Judiciary of New York (state), Unified Court System of the New York (state), State of New York. It consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeal ...
ruled in favor of the state using eminent domain for the project. Empire State Development Corporation
Empire State Development (ESD) is the umbrella organization for New York's two principal economic development public-benefit corporations, the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC) and the New York Job Development Authority (JDA). ...
Vice President Warner Johnston indicated that the agency is committed to seeing the project completed and said "we can now move forward with development."
Barclays Center was accused of mistreating luxury box
The luxury box (or skybox) and club seating constitute the most expensive class of seating in arenas and stadiums, and generate much higher revenues than regular seating. Club ticketholders often receive exclusive access to an indoor part of th ...
holders who are African-American. Three employees of Ludwig's Pharmacy in Prospect Heights claimed in a lawsuit filed in October 2013 that they were singled out for bad treatment at the arena because they are black. In 2016, the federal lawsuit was summarily dismissed. https://casetext.com/case/ludwigs-drug-store-inc-v-forest-city-enters-inc
Labor issues
A group of 120 part-time construction workers who work to convert the arena from a concert hall to a sports venue unsuccessfully tried to switch unions in February 2013. The pay for part-time work is structured differently than that of the same work at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
, and workers have complained about not being able to make a living on one-day-a-month work at $14/hour, and being barred from collecting unemployment.
Quality as a hockey venue
As the arena was not originally designed with hockey in mind, the New York Islanders' move to Barclays Center resulted in complaints about seats with obstructed views and the arena's ice quality.
Some seats were singled out for having poor and obstructed sightlines during hockey games. ''Business Insider
''Business Insider'' (stylized in all caps: BUSINESS INSIDER; known from 2021 to 2023 as INSIDER) is a New York City–based multinational financial and business news website founded in 2007. Since 2015, a majority stake in ''Business Inside ...
'' has called sections 201 to 204 and 228 to 231, "the worst seat in American professional sports". In an interview with ''Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
'', Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark acknowledged the issue, but insisted nothing can be done: "There's really nothing we're going to do from a capital improvement standpoint. You can watch the game on your mobile device. The game is on the scoreboard." There have also been complaints over the quality of the ice during hockey games. The arena uses PVC piping instead of steel piping under the ice surface, making it much harder to maintain ice consistent with NHL standards for quality and temperature.
SeatGeek technical issues
SeatGeek's time as the ticketing provider for events at the arena was met with multiple technical issues, as well as lower than expected ticket sales for concerts that were partly caused by these issues. ''Billboard'' reported that a 2021 New Year's Eve show by The Strokes
The Strokes are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1998. The band is composed of lead singer and primary songwriter Julian Casablancas, guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond, Jr., Albert Hammond Jr., bassist Nikola ...
(which was later delayed to April 2022 due to concerns over the Omicron COVID-19 variant
Omicron (, ; uppercase Ο, lowercase ο, ) is the fifteenth letter of the Greek alphabet. This letter is derived from the Phoenician letter ayin: . In classical Greek, omicron represented the close-mid back rounded vowel in contrast to ''omega ...
) experienced technical issues during a presale that cost the band hundreds of thousands of dollars according to their booking agents (the show ended up only selling 13,548 tickets and grossing $1,570,000 in total, which was 2,000 tickets and $400,000 less than the group's 2019 New Year's Eve show at the arena, which their booking agents blamed on SeatGeek's user interface and not the popularity of the band). In addition, a show by Genesis as part of their The Last Domino? Tour that was booked for the arena due to high demand for the tour's other shows in New York also experienced technical issues after tickets went on sale and saw lower than expected ticket sales, which led to the show later being canceled.
Gallery
File:Panorama of Barclays Center..jpg, Panorama of Barclays Center
File:Atlantic Terminal td (2019-03-30) 020 - Barclays Center.jpg, Barclays Center
File:Barclays Center - front view.jpg, Barclays Center as seen on 2 May, 2025 near subway station entrance
References
External links
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