American Airlines Arena

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For the arena in Dallas, Texas, see American Airlines Center.
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American Airlines Arena
AAAMiami.jpg
Front view of the AAA during playoffs
Location 601 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami FL, 33132
Coordinates 25°46′53″N 80°11′17″W / 25.78139°N 80.18806°W / 25.78139; -80.18806Coordinates: 25°46′53″N 80°11′17″W / 25.78139°N 80.18806°W / 25.78139; -80.18806
Opened December 31, 1999
Owner Miami Sports and Entertainment Authority
Operator Leisure Management International
Construction cost $213 million
Architect Arquitectonica
360 Architecture (formerly Heinlein Schrock Stearns)
Capacity 19,600 (With upper levels)
16,000 (Without upper levels)
  • Can be configured five ways
  • Minimum 5,000
  • Maximum 20,000
Tenants
Miami Heat (NBA) (2000-present)
Miami Sol (WNBA) (2000-2002)

The American Airlines Arena is a sports and entertainment arena located in Downtown Miami, Florida along Biscayne Bay. It was constructed as a replacement for the Miami Arena and was designed by the architecture firms Arquitectonica and 360 Architecture. It is home to the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association.

The Women's National Basketball Association team Miami Sol played at the arena from the team's birth in 2000 until the team's folding in 2002.

American Airlines maintains the American Airlines Arena Travel Center at the venue.[1]

Contents

[edit] Other notes

 Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (April 2009)
  • American Airlines Arena should not be confused with the American Airlines Center, which is located in Dallas.
  • The American Airlines Arena as well as the American Airlines Center, hosted the 2006 NBA Finals, in which the Miami Heat played the Dallas Mavericks. Because of this, the series was nicknamed by some as the American Airlines series.
  • As part of its sponsorship arrangement, American Airlines had a giant aircraft painted on top of the arena's roof, with an American Airlines logo in the center. The design is visible from airplanes taking off and landing at Miami International Airport, where American has a hub. The arena also has luxury skyboxes called "Flagship Lounges," a trademark originally used for American's premium-class lounges at certain airports.
  • The arena sits on the former location of part of the Bicentennial Park street circuit used for IMSA and CART racing.
  • The arena was the setting for the highly publicized MTV Video Music Awards, both in 2004 and 2005. Both events brought millions of dollars into the Miami-Dade County economy.
  • The arena hosted WCW Uncensored 2000, World Wrestling Entertainment's Royal Rumble event on January 29, 2006, and Survivor Series on November 18, 2007. It's also hosted WWE Raw on January 1, 2007, and WWE SmackDown/ECW on April 1, 2008. WWE returned to the arena on July 14, 2009 for Smackdown/ECW
  • Local sportscasters often refer to the arena as the "triple-A". Some sports reporters on the local news stations such as WSVN have referred to the arena as "A3" (A cubed).
  • The arena is scheduled to play host to 1st and 2nd round games in the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
  • The arena is known for its unusual scoreboard, which changes colors depending on the atmosphere.
  • The Waterfront Theater is a theater within the arena that can seat between 3,000 and 5,800. It is Florida's largest theater and can be used for not only concerts but also family, Broadway and other stage shows.
  • For concerts in an arena configuration, end stage capacity is 12,202 for 180-degree shows, 15,402 for 270-degree shows, 18,309 for 360-degree shows. For center stage concerts the arena can seat 19,146.
  • The American Airlines Arena also hosted the first UFC event in the state of Florida, UFC 42: Sudden Impact, on April 25, 2003.
  • In December 2003, Vermont-based jamband Phish played 4 consecutive nights at the American Airlines Arena, the last of which being a 3 set New Year's Eve show. Phish will be playing another 4 night run beginning on December 28, 2009 and culminating on New Year's Eve.
  • In November 2002, Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour performed at AAA for an NBC special which aired in April 2003, winning an Emmy.
  • Two shows of the US leg of Madonna's Confessions Tour recently took place at the arena, in late July.
  • Latin mega-star Shakira held 5 shows for her North American leg of the Oral Fixation Tour in the arena; 2 in September and 3 in December.
  • The arena was featured in the 2004 Xbox game Driv3r.
  • On March 28, 2004, Britney Spears performed to a sold out show as part of The Onyx Hotel Tour. The show was broadcasted live over the world.
  • On March 3, 2006, Queen + Paul Rodgers performed their Queen + Paul Rodgers Tour at the arena.
  • Architectural design team members included: George Heinlein, Reinaldo Borges, and Lance Simon.
  • The arena was host to the American Idol 2008 auditions on August 20-22nd, 2007.
  • The Arena was host of two concerts of the Argentinian rock band Soda Stereo on December 4, December 5, 2007.
  • Kanye West performed his Glow In The Dark Tour featuring N*E*R*D, Lupe Fiasco, and Rihanna on May 6, 2008.
  • Tina Turner performed her Tina: Live in Concert Tour at the arena before a sell-out crowd of over 16,000 on October 30, 2008.
  • Celine Dion performed her Taking Chances Tour at the arena on January 23, 2009 and set an attendance record making it the largest crowd in the arena's history.
  • "See through" shot-clocks from Daktronics have now been added in place of the older units.*
  • Britney Spears performed as part of her The Circus Starring: Britney Spears Tour at the arena on March 7, 2009. She set an attendance record with a sell-out crowd of 18,644, beating out Celine Dion who previously gathered a 17,725 crowd. It is noted as the largest concert attendance in the arena's history as of 2009.

[edit] Past/Upcoming Concerts Events

[edit] Gallery

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Arena at night

View from Biscayne Bay

Satellite view

View from the north at night

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Miami And Coral Gables, FL Travel Center." American Airlines. Retrieved on April 9, 2009.

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Miami Arena		 Home of the
Miami Heat
1999 – present		 Succeeded by
current
Preceded by
first arena		 Home of the
Miami Sol
2000 – 2002		 Succeeded by
last arena
Preceded by
Save Mart Center		 Home of the
Royal Rumble
2006		 Succeeded by
AT&T Center
Preceded by
Kodak Theatre		 Host of the
Latin Grammy Awards
2003		 Succeeded by
Shrine Auditorium
v • d • e
Miami Heat
Founded in 1988 • Based in Miami, Florida
The Franchise
Arenas
Miami Arena • American Airlines Arena
Head coaches
Important figures
D-League Affiliate
NBA
Championships (1)
Culture and lore
Retired numbers
13 • 23 • 33 • 10
Rivals
v • d • e
Current arenas in the National Basketball Association
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
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