Kaseya Center

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

AmericanAirlines Arena

AAA The Triple A A3
AmericanAirlines Arena logo
Looking east to the main facade of AmericanAirlines Arena
AmericanAirlines Arena Location in Miami AmericanAirlines Arena Location in Florida AmericanAirlines Arena Location in the United States
Address	601 Biscayne Boulevard
Location	Miami, Florida
Coordinates	25°46′53″N 80°11′17″W
Public transit	Historic Overtown/Lyric Theatre Virgin MiamiCentral Freedom Tower Park West
Parking	939 parking spaces
Owner	Miami-Dade County
Operator	Basketball Properties Ltd.
Capacity	Basketball: 19,600; 16,500 (Without upper levels) Concerts: 5,000-20,021
Surface	Multi-surface
Construction
Broke ground	February 6, 1998
Opened	December 31, 1999
Construction cost	$213 million ($390 million in 2023 dollars)
Architect	Arquitectonica 360 Architecture (formerly Heinlein Schrock Stearns)
Project manager	Parsons Brinckerhoff
Structural engineer	Thornton Tomasetti
Services engineer	Flack+Kurtz
General contractor	Morse-Diesel/Odebrecht/Facchina
Main contractors	John J. Kirlin, LLC Simpson Constructors Crown Corr Inc.
Tenants
Miami Heat (NBA) (2000–present) Miami Sol (WNBA) (2000–2002)

The AmericanAirlines Arena (AAA) 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 Miami Arena and designed by the architecture firms Arquitectonica and 360 Architecture. The Arena is home to the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association.

The AmericanAirlines Arena is directly served by the Miami Metrorail at Government Center station via free transfers to Metromover Omni Loop, providing direct service to Freedom Tower and Park West stations. The Arena is also within walking distance from the Historic Overtown/Lyric Theatre Metrorail station.

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, musical theatre and other stage shows. American Airlines which has a hub at Miami International Airport maintains the AmericanAirlines Arena Travel Center at the venue.

In September 2019, it was reported that the arena will have a new name in 2020.

The airline also holds the naming rights for another NBA venue, the American Airlines Center for the Dallas Mavericks and the Dallas Stars, which opened in 2001.

History

The AmericanAirlines Arena opened on December 31, 1999, and its construction cost was $213 million. Architectural design team members included George Heinlein, Cristian Petschen, Reinaldo Borges, and Lance Simon. The AmericanAirlines Arena was inaugurated with a concert by Gloria Estefan. Two days later, on January 2, 2000, the Miami Heat played its first game in the new arena by defeating the Orlando Magic 111–103.

The main façade of the arena at night

As part of its sponsorship arrangement, American Airlines had a giant aircraft painted atop 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.

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, designed by Artist Christopher Janney. Drawing on the underwater anemone forms, the scoreboard also changes colors depending on the atmosphere. For concerts in an arena configuration, end stage capacity is 12,202 for 180° shows, 15,402 for 270° shows, 18,309 for 360° shows. For center stage concerts the arena can seat 19,146.

The Miami Heat has not had to pay to use the $357-million venue, which sits on $38 million of county land; the county has paid $64 million in operating subsidies. "It was never a good deal," says former Miami-Dade Commissioner Katy Sorenson, who opposed the new arena in 1996. "There are certain politicians who just get stars in their eyes and don't really think about what the real cost is going to be."

WTVJ, the city's NBC owned-and-operated station in Miami, had their Downtown Miami Studios in the back of the arena from 2001 till 2011.

Although American Airlines underwent a significant rebrand in early 2013, the arena still uses the airline's old logo.

On September 10, 2019, it was reported that American Airlines said that it would not renew its naming rights upon expiration at the end of 2019. The new naming rights contract with a sponsor yet to be determined will be a ten-year/six-month deal lasting from January 1, 2020, to June 30, 2030 (to time with the end of the 2029-30 NBA season).

Accessibility

Transportation

The arena as seen from Freedom Tower station.

Traffic congestion after events can cause delays for those who choose to drive to the arena. Visitors to the AmericanAirlines Arena are encouraged to take Metrorail, Metromover, or Metrobus, as parking can be scarce and expensive. Metromover's Freedom Tower station is located two blocks west of the arena. The nearest Metrorail stations are Government Center and Historic Overtown. The Metromover is free to ride and connects to Metrorail at Government Center station.

Parking on-site

AmericanAirlines Arena features 939 parking spaces during HEAT Games. On-site parking is reserved for Premium seat and Dewar's 12 Clubhouse ticket holders. On-site parking spaces must be pre-purchased through the Arena's Official Parking Provider, ParkJockey.

Notable events

Basketball

The arena during game 3 of the 2006 NBA Finals

• The American Airlines Arena along with the American Airlines Center in Dallas, hosted the 2006 NBA Finals and the 2011 NBA Finals. The Miami Heat played the Dallas Mavericks. The Heat won the championship in 2006 in Dallas and the Mavericks won in the 2011 rematch in Miami. These series were the first and second appearances in the NBA Finals for both franchises. As the airline held the naming rights to both venues, people nicknamed the matchups as the "American Airlines series".
• The arena hosted the 2012, 2013 and 2014 NBA Finals along with the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City in 2012, and the AT&T Center in San Antonio in 2013 and 2014. In 2012, the Heat defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games, winning the championship at home. In 2013, the Heat played the San Antonio Spurs. The Heat faced a 3–2 series deficit returning to Miami but won games 6 and 7 to defend their championship. In 2014, the Spurs defeated the Heat in five games in San Antonio and won the championship and the rematch.
• Since 2015, the arena has hosted the annual Hoophall Miami Invitational, a NCAA Division I college basketball showcase event.

Professional wrestling

The arena hosted WCW Uncensored pay-per-view in 2000. Four major WWE pay-per-view events have been held at the arena: the Royal Rumble in 2006, Survivor Series in 2007 and 2010, and Hell in a Cell in 2013.

Other sports

• The AmericanAirlines Arena also hosted the first UFC event in the state of Florida, UFC 42: Sudden Impact, on April 25, 2003.
• The arena features a regulation NHL ice rink, though the arena has never hosted the sport, as the Florida Panthers have played in Sunrise at the BB&T Center since October 1998. The rink, lined with a smaller wall, instead accommodates ice shows such as Disney on Ice.

Music

File:Shakira Stops By Soundcheck cropped.jpg

Shakira has performed 9 sold-out shows in AmericanAirlines Arena, the most number of appearances at the venue among all the artists. She also holds the record of having most shows in the venue within one single tour, Oral Fixation Tour in 2006, with 5 sold-out shows.

• Mariah Carey performed here as part of her Rainbow World Tour on March 29, 2000.
• On November 7–8, 2002, Cher's Living Proof: The Farewell Tour performed at AmericanAirlines Arena for an NBC special, which aired in April 2003, winning an Emmy Award.
• 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. She performed as part of her The Circus Starring Britney Spears Tour at the arena on March 7, 2009, and set an attendance record with a sold-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.
• The 2004 MTV Video Music Awards and 2005 MTV Video Music Awards were held at the arena.
• 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.
• U2 brought their award-winning Vertigo Tour to Miami on November 13 and 14, 2005.
• Shakira performed in the arena as part of her Tour of the Mongoose for the first time on December 2, 2002. 4 years later, she performed in the arena on September 15 and 16, 2006 as part of her Oral Fixation Tour and returned for 3 more shows (December 7, 8 & 9, 2006), where the DVD footage of the concert was filmed. With 5 shows together, this makes the Colombian singer obtaining the most sold-out shows in the arena as a female artist. She brought her The Sun Comes Out World Tour to the arena again on September 27, 2010. 7 years later, she returned to the arena with El Dorado World Tour on August 17 and 18, 2018.
• On December 4–5, 2007, the Argentine rock band Soda Stereo performed at the AmericanAirlines Arena as part of his farewell tour Me Verás Volver, being this tour a sellout in Argentina and the Americas. It was six (6) sold-out shows in the famous Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti.
• The arena was host to For Darfur benefit concert, which was the Miami stop for Kanye West's Glow in the Dark Tour, on May 6, 2008.
• Tina Turner performed at the arena as a part of her Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour on October 30, 2008.
• Celine Dion performed at the arena as a part of her Taking Chances Tour on January 23, 2009, and set an attendance record making it the largest crowd in the arena's history. Dion will return to the arena on January 17 and 18, 2020 as part of her Courage World Tour.
• The cast of Mexican hit TV series Two Faces of Love beat out Britney Spears selling out a crowd of 18,693 making this the largest concert attendance in the arena's history, as of 2010.
• Lady Gaga performed at the arena for The Monster Ball Tour to a sold-out crowd of 14,695 on April 13, 2011, and was scheduled return as part of her Born This Way Ball Tour on March 16, 2013, but cancelled, not only this show but the entire rest of the tour, due to a hip injury.
• Jennifer Lopez performed at the arena on August 31 and September 1, 2012, to two sold-out crowds as part of her Dance Again World Tour along with the help of Enrique Iglesias.
• Madonna performed at the arena on November 19–20, 2012 as part of her MDNA Tour. The sold-out shows were filmed for a DVD, entitled MDNA World Tour.
• Miley Cyrus performed a total of three sold-out concerts in the arena, as a part of her Best of Both Worlds Tour on January 31, 2008, Wonder World Tour on December 2, 2009, and Bangerz Tour on March 22, 2014.
• Kanye West performed at the arena during his Saint Pablo Tour on September 16–17, 2016.
• Australian worship band Hillsong United recorded a 2-hour long live CD/DVD set, entitled Hillsong United: Live in Miami, which was released in August 2011, which was filmed, recorded and played at the arena in front of a sold-out audience.
• One Direction performed a sold-out show at the arena on June 14, 2013, as part of their Take Me Home Tour.
• Indoor electronic dance music event Sensation took place at the arena on October 11–12, 2013.
• Katy Perry performed a sold-out show at the arena as part of The Prismatic World Tour on July 3, 2014. She returned to the arena as part of her Witness: The Tour on December 20, 2017.
• Demi Lovato performed at the arena as part of her Demi World Tour on September 14, 2014; she returned during her Tell Me You Love Me World Tour on March 30, 2018.
• Ariana Grande performed at the arena as part of The Honeymoon Tour on March 28, 2015. She also performed at the arena for the Dangerous Woman Tour on April 14, 2017.
• Chris Brown performed at the arena during his One Hell Of a Nite Tour on September 3, 2015.
• Janet Jackson performed at the arena as part of Unbreakable World Tour on September 20, 2015. She performed again on August 5, 2018, as part of her State of the World Tour and on June 24, 2020, as the opening night by her Black Diamond World Tour.
• The Weeknd performed a show at the arena as part of The Madness Fall Tour on December 19, 2015.
• Rihanna performed a show at the arena on March 15, 2016, as a part of her Anti World Tour.
• Selena Gomez performed at the arena as part of her Revival Tour on June 11, 2016.
• Maroon 5 performed a show at the arena as part of their Maroon V Tour on September 7, 2016
• Adele performed two sold-out concerts at the arena as part of her Adele Live 2016 tour on October 25–26, 2016.

Gallery

• 
  Arena during the 2004 NBA Playoffs
• 
  Front view of the AAA in July 2010
• 
  View from Biscayne Bay
• 
  View from the north at night
• 
  Arena at night

External links

• Official website
• Satellite view from Google Maps

Events and tenants
Preceded by Miami Arena	Home of the Miami Heat 1999–present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by none	Home of the Miami Sol 2000–2002	Succeeded by none
Preceded by Save Mart Center	Home of the Royal Rumble 2006	Succeeded by AT&T Center