Toyota Center is an
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 ...
located in
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, Texas, United States. It is named after the Japanese automobile manufacturer
Toyota
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
. The arena is home to the
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (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 ...
(NBA), and it was once the home of the
Houston Aeros of the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...
(AHL), and the
Houston Comets
The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...
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 ...
(WNBA).
Rockets owner
Leslie Alexander first began to request a new arena in 1995 and attempted to release the Rockets from their lease at
The Summit, which ran until 2003. However, he was denied by arena owner
Chuck Watson
Charles Wyndham Watson (August 30, 1915 in Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada – April 20, 2002 in Kaneohe, Hawaii), was an American sculptor. After working as an apprentice carpenter during the Great Depression, Watson studied engineering br ...
, then-owner of the Aeros, who also wanted control of a new arena. The two sides agreed to equal control over an arena in a deal signed in 1997, but the proposal was rejected by city voters in a 1999 referendum. It was not until the city and the Rockets signed an amended agreement in 2001, excluding the Aeros, that the proposal was accepted.
Construction began in July 2001, and the new arena was officially opened in October 2003. The total costs were $235 million, with the city of Houston paying the majority, and the Rockets paying for enhancements.
Toyota
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
paid US$100 million 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 ...
.
History

In May 1995, several Texas sports teams, including the Houston Rockets, proposed legislation that would dedicate
state tax revenue to build new arenas. Although the bill failed in the
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...
, Rockets owner
Leslie Alexander announced he would continue to study the possibility of constructing a new arena in downtown Houston, saying the 20-year-old
Summit
A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous.
The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...
arena was too outdated to be profitable. Although the Summit's management said they could renovate the building for a small part of the cost of a new arena, the Rockets began talks with the city of Houston on a possible location for an arena, They also negotiated with
Houston Aeros and Summit owner, Chuck Watson, to release them from their contract with the Summit, which ran until 2003.
As the negotiations continued into 1996, a panel appointed by Houston mayor
Bob Lanier
Robert Jerry Lanier Jr. (September 10, 1948 – May 10, 2022) was an American professional basketball player. He played center (basketball), center for the Detroit Pistons and the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). L ...
reported that building a new arena was "essential to keep pro sports in Houston". After Watson rejected a contract buyout proposal of $30 million, the Rockets filed a legal challenge against their lease, stating the "need to be able to buy out" of the lease. However, the city of Houston filed a counterclaim to force the Rockets to stay at the Summit, saying that if the Rockets did not honor their contract, then they might "have no incentive to honor any new agreement with the city of Houston to play in a new downtown sports arena". The validity of the lease was eventually upheld, and in April 1997, Lanier announced that the Rockets and Watson would have to agree to share control of the new arena equally, or lose access to it altogether. After both parties agreed to the terms, a bill that authorized increased taxes to pay for a new arena was signed into law in July, by then-
Governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
.
However, after the
NHL
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 ...
decided not to consider Houston as a location for an
expansion team
An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also ...
because of the indecision over the new arena, Lanier said that he would not have a referendum in November. The Rockets began an appeal in January 1998 against the court order to stay at the Summit, but then dropped it in May, because they felt that a new arena would be ready by the time they finished their lease. In January 1999, recently elected mayor
Lee Brown guaranteed a referendum on the issue before the end of the year. After several months negotiating with the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority, the Rockets finalized a deal to pay half of the constructions costs, and a referendum was set for November 2. The deal was approved by Brown and the Houston City Council, but Watson started an opposition group against the referendum, saying the arena was "not in Houston's interest". On November 3, the results of the referendum were announced, and the arena proposal was rejected by 54% of voters.
Alexander said "we never thought we would lose" and that they were "devastated by the loss".
After the vote, NBA commissioner
David Stern
David Joel Stern (September 22, 1942 – January 1, 2020) was an American lawyer and business executive who was the commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1984 to 2014. Stern oversaw NBA basketball's growth into one of t ...
said "if there's not a new building...I think it's certain that the team will be relocated." The Houston Sports Authority had not planned to meet with the Rockets until after the NBA season ended, but after the Rockets began to talk to other cities about relocation, they resumed talks in February 2000. Although the Rockets continued to negotiate with
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
, a funding plan for the arena in Houston was released in June. A final agreement was proposed on July 6, and both the Rockets and mayor Brown agreed to the terms. After the city council approved the deal, the proposal was placed on the November referendum ballot. Leading up to the vote, the Rockets stressed that there would be "no new taxes of any kind", although opponents said the new arena would raise energy consumption, and also contended that the public would pay for too much of the costs of the arena. Contributions for the campaign for the arena included donations of US$400,000 from
Reliant Energy
Reliant Energy Retail Holding, LLC is an American energy company based in Houston, Texas. It serves the state of Texas.
History
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Reliant Energy, a subsidiary of NRG Energy, is one of the largest Texas electricity ...
, and a total of $590,000 in loans and contributions from
Enron
Enron Corporation was an American Energy development, energy, Commodity, commodities, and services company based in Houston, Texas. It was led by Kenneth Lay and developed in 1985 via a merger between Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth, both re ...
and
Ken Lay
Kenneth Lee Lay (April 15, 1942 – July 5, 2006) was an American businessman and political donor who was the founder, chief executive officer and chairman of Enron. He was heavily involved in Enron's accounting scandal that unraveled in 2001 ...
, who the Rockets said was a "tireless" force in the campaign. On November 8, the arena was approved by 66% of voters.
Construction

According to the agreement signed, the city of Houston bought the land for the arena and an adjoining parking garage, which was near the
George R. Brown Convention Center
The George R. Brown Convention Center (GRB), opened on September 26, 1987, is located on the east side of Downtown Houston, Texas, United States.
The center was named for internationally recognized entrepreneur, engineer, civic leader, philan ...
, and paid for it by selling
bonds and borrowing $30 million.
Morris Architects, designed the building, and
Hunt Construction was contracted to build the arena.
A building formerly owned by Houston Lighting and Power Company was demolished to make way for the arena, and two streets were closed for the duration of the construction.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held on July 31, 2001, and construction continued for 26 months.
At the request of Alexander, the arena was built below street level, so fans would not have to walk up stairs to reach their seats.
To sink the arena, $12 million was spent to excavate of dirt over four months,
which was the largest excavation in Houston history.
Concrete was poured for the foundation throughout the summer of 2002, and structural work began in October. The roof was set on in December, as work continued inside, with a peak workforce of 650. In September 2003, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to mark the official opening of the arena.
The total cost of construction was $235 million, with the city paying $182 million, and the Rockets adding $43 million for additions and enhancements.
Arena interior
The arena can seat 18,104 for a
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 (appro ...
game, 17,800 for
ice hockey games, and 19,300 for concerts.
The prices for courtside seats to a Rockets game in the new arena were raised by as much as 50% compared to prices in the team's old home, while upper-deck seat prices were lowered.
It has 103 luxury suites and 2,900 club seats (Sections 105–109, Frost Bank West Club; Sections 118–122, Frost Bank East Club). The Rockets East & West Clubs feature upscale concessions, extra wide seats, full private bar featuring premium wine and beverage selections and concierge service.
The adjacent 2,500-space Toyota Tundra garage is connected to the arena by a private skybridge that can be accessed by Suite, Court-side and Club Seat holders.
Additionally, the floor level features three separate private club lounges for access from court-side seat holders and floor seat concert goers. Lexus Lounge and Golden Nugget Club are on the west side of the floor level and the Bogarts Platinum Lounge is located on the east side of the floor level.
All feature upscale amenities including multiple flat screen televisions, private bar, restrooms, and plush seating. The Lexus Lounge has its own pool tables and all three court-side lounges feature numerous private court-side suites.
Toyota Center also features the Sterling Vineyards Red & White Wine Bistro, located on the lower suites level on the south side of the arena.
Levy Restaurants manages concession services at the arena, and offers fast food on the main concourses, while also catering a VIP restaurant for Suite and Club Seat holders. Alexander personally chose colors for the restaurant to help customers feel "warm and comfortable", and Rockets president George Postolos said that the Rockets looked "for a relationship with the people that attend events in our venue".
Originally, a by centerhung video system from
Daktronics
Daktronics, Inc. is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota, that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems, and related products. It was found ...
, which has four main replay screens and eight other full-color displays, hung from the ceiling of the arena, and had the highest-resolution display of any North American sports facility. In 2012, Toyota Center installed a larger, 4 panel scoreboard, similar to the one installed at
AT&T Stadium
AT&T Stadium is a retractable roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It serves as the home of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was completed on May 27, 2009. It is also the home of the Cotton Bowl Classic ...
, measuring by on the sidelines, and by on the ends, making it the largest such video board in an indoor arena. This larger scoreboard was installed by
Panasonic
is a Japanese multinational electronics manufacturer, headquartered in Kadoma, Osaka, Kadoma, Japan. It was founded in 1918 as in Fukushima-ku, Osaka, Fukushima by Kōnosuke Matsushita. The company was incorporated in 1935 and renamed and c ...
and made its debut during the Houston Rockets 2012–13 season opener. The arena has two additional displays located at each end of the court, and a "state-of-the-art" audio system.
Another amenity new to Toyota Center in the 2012–2013 season is Wi-Fi. Designed by SignalShare and implemented by OfficeConnect.net, the Wi-Fi network is deployed throughout the arena and allows high-speed internet access during events. Its implementation was timed to be ready for the NBA All-Star Game.
Sponsorship
In July 2003, the arena was named Toyota Center. The logo of the company was placed on the roof of the building, as well in other prominent places inside the arena, and the company was given "a dominant presence" in commercials shown during broadcasts of games played in the arena.
Seating capacity
The seating capacity for basketball games has been as follows:
Events
The arena's first event was a
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...
concert on October 6, 2003, and the first Rockets game at Toyota Center was against the
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...
on October 30.
Other sports
In 2007, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2021, and 2022, it played host to a
UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...
event
Event may refer to:
Gatherings of people
* Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion
* Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest
* Event management, the organization of eve ...
.
On August 21, 2010, it played host to
Strikeforce: Houston.
The arena has hosted a number of
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...
events including
No Mercy in 2005,
Vengeance: Night of Champions, the
2009 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, two editions of
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs (
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
and
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
),
Night of Champions 2015,
NXT TakeOver: WarGames 2017,
Survivor Series 2017,
Elimination Chamber 2019, as well as various episodes of ''
Raw'' and ''
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE. It airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on USA Network in the United ...
''. WWE also held their first live show in front of fans, for the first time since the onset of 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 ...
, with the July 16, 2021, episode of ''SmackDown'' at Toyota Center. On December 30, 2024, the arena hosted the final episode of ''Raw'' on the
USA Network
USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...
.
Other events
On September 30, 2016, the arena hosted the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions.
The arena will be the site of the
2028 Republican National Convention
The 2028 Republican National Convention is an event in which delegates of the United States Republican Party will select the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2028 United States presidential election. It is scheduled to b ...
.
Attendance records
The current attendance for a concert held at the arena was set on November 20, 2008, when
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
played to a sold-out crowd of 17,962 during the Death Magnetic tour. The record for a basketball game is 18,583, set on March 26, 2010, when the
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...
defeated the Rockets 109–101.
Awards and recognitions
The arena was the winner of the Allen Award for Civic Enhancement by Central Houston, the "Rookie of the Year" award by the
Harlem Globetrotters
The Harlem Globetrotters is an American Exhibition game, exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, entertainment, and comedy in their style of play. Over the years, they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 124 ...
, and a finalist for Pollstar Magazine's "Best New Concert Venue" award.
See also
*
List of sports venues with the name Toyota
Toyota (Toyota Motor Corporation, or TMC) is a multinational corporation headquartered in the city of the same name in Japan.
Toyota may also refer to:
Organisations Businesses
* Toyota Group
** Toyota Australia, a subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corp ...
*
List of basketball arenas
References
External links
Toyota Center Homepage
{{Authority control
Basketball venues in Houston
Basketball venues in Texas
Gymnastics venues in Texas
Houston Aeros (1994–2013)
Houston Comets
Houston Rockets
Ice hockey venues in the United States
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design basic silver certified buildings
Mixed martial arts venues in Texas
NBA venues
Wrestling venues in Houston
Sports venues completed in 2003
Music venues in Houston
Toyota
Buildings and structures in Houston
Indoor arenas in Texas
Sports venues in Houston
Populous (company) buildings
2003 establishments in Texas
Downtown Houston
Women's National Basketball Association venues
Ice hockey venues in Texas