Kaseya Center

For the arena in Dallas, Texas, see American Airlines Center.

AmericanAirlines Arena

Front view of the AmericanAirlines Arena during the NBA Playoffs.
Location	601 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami FL, 33132
Coordinates	25°46′53″N 80°11′17″W
Owner	Miami Sports and Entertainment Authority
Operator	Basketball Properties,Ltd.
Capacity	19,600 (With upper levels) 16,000 (Without upper levels) Can be configured five ways Minimum 5,000 Maximum 20,000
Construction
Opened	December 31, 1999
Construction cost	$213 million
Architect	Arquitectonica 360 Architecture (formerly Heinlein Schrock Stearns)
Tenants
Miami Heat (NBA) (2000–present) Miami Sol (WNBA) (2000–2002)

The AmericanAirlines Arena is a sports and entertainment arena located in Downtown Miami, Florida along Biscayne Bay. It was constructed beginning in 1998 as a replacement for the aging Miami Arena and was designed by the architecture firms Arquitectonica and 360 Architecture. The Arena is home to the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association. In the early 2000's, 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. The AmericanAirlines Arena is served by the Miami Metrorail at Government Center Station and is within walking distance from Historic Overtown/Lyric Theatre Station. There is more direct access to the arena within closer proximity via Miami-Dade Transit Metromover's Freedom Tower Station and Park West Station.

AmericanAirlines maintains the AmericanAirlines Arena Travel Center at the venue. AmericanAirlines Arena should not be confused with the AmericanAirlines Center, which is located in Dallas. Even the official spelling of the building is distinct as "American" and "Airlines" is considered as one word. An example of this wording is FedExForum or FedExField, the only difference is that "AmericanAirlines" and "Arena" are not joined together.

The AmericanAirlines Arena has 2,105 club seats, 80 luxury suites, and 76 private boxes. The Waterfront Theater is Florida's largest theater which is housed within the arena, that can seat between 3,000 and 5,800. The theater can be configured for concerts, family events, Broadway and other stage shows.

History

The AmericanAirlines Arena opened on December 31, 1999 and its construction cost was $213,000,000. Architectural design team members included George Heinlein, Reinaldo Borges, and Lance Simon.

As part of its sponsorship arrangement, AmericanAirlines had a giant aircraft painted on top of the arena's roof, with an AmericanAirlines 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.

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 known for its unusual scoreboard, which changes colors depending on the atmosphere. 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.

Notable events hosted

• The AmericanAirlines Arena as well as the AmericanAirlines 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 AmericanAirlines series.
• The arena sits on the former location of part of the Bicentennial Park street circuit used for IMSA and CART racing.
• The Arena hosted the 4th Annual Latin Grammy Awards in 2003.
• 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, and WWE SmackDown/ECW on December 18, 2009. The arena hosted WWE Raw on June 7, 2010, and is also scheduled to host Survivor Series again on November 21, 2010.
• The arena played host to 1st and 2nd round games in the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
• The AmericanAirlines Arena also hosted the first UFC event in the state of Florida, UFC 42: Sudden Impact, on April 25, 2003.
• In November 2002, Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour performed at AmericanAirlines Arena for an NBC special which aired in April 2003, winning an Emmy.
• On March 28, 2004, Britney Spears performed to a sold out show as part of The Onyx Hotel Tour. The show was broadcast live over the world.
• The 2004 and 2005 MTV Video Music Awards were held there. Celebrities entered by yacht rather than by limousine.
• The arena was host to the American Idol 2008 auditions on August 20-22nd, 2007.
• 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.
• 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 18,309, 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.
• The cast of mexican tv series Two Faces Of Love is scheduled to perform here on November 6 and 7, 2010. They set a new attendance record with a sold-out crowd of 18,644 people, beating out Celine Dion and Britney Spears.

Gallery

• 
  Arena during the NBA Playoffs
• 
  Front view of the AAA in July 2010
• 
  View from Biscayne Bay
• 
  View from the north at night

External links

• AmericanAirlines Arena's official page
• Satellite view from Google Maps
• Fan Info. For AmericanAirlines Arena

Events and tenants
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