United Supermarkets Arena

United Supermarkets Arena
Entertainment Showcase of West Texas
Former names	United Spirit Arena (1999–2014)
Location	1701 Indiana Avenue; Lubbock, TX 79409
Coordinates	33°34′52.54″N 101°53′11.89″W / 33.5812611°N 101.8866361°W
Owner	Texas Tech University
Operator	Texas Tech University
Capacity	15,098 (2001–present); 15,050 (1999–2001)
Surface	Hardwood
Construction
Broke ground	March 26, 1997
Opened	October 1, 1999
Construction cost	$62.775 million; ($115 million in 2024 dollars)
Architect	Rosser International; Joe D. Mckay AIA Architects
Project manager	Hill International
General contractor	Centex Construction Co.
Tenants
	Texas Tech Red Raiders (NCAA DI) (1999–present)

United Supermarkets Arena (previously the United Spirit Arena) is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. The 15,098-seat arena opened in 1999 and is home to the Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball, Texas Tech Lady Raiders basketball and Texas Tech Red Raiders women's volleyball teams.

History

The City of Lubbock proposed replacing the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum with a new arena named after Buddy Holly. The proposed Buddy Holly Arena was to be located next to the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center in Downtown Lubbock, not on the Texas Tech University campus. A public referendum for a tax increase to build the arena failed to pass by as few as 600 votes. Texas Tech decided to move construction to an on campus facility with private donations on the university's campus.

The arena was financed from a $500 million fundraising endeavor undertaken by John T. Montford, the first chancellor of the Texas Tech University System.^[2] Ground breaking began on March 26, 1997.^[3] The arena opened on October 1, 1999, at a cost of $62.775 million.^[4]

Design

The arena features a Spanish Renaissance exterior facade, matching architectural style of the rest of the Texas Tech University campus. Architects for the project included Joe D. Mckay AIA Architects, and Rosser International. Hill International was the project manager, and the general contractor was Centex Construction Co.^[5]^[6]

Standing at the southeast entrance of the arena is the 8-story Victory Tower. At 96 feet (29 m), Victory Tower is the 16th tallest structure in Lubbock.^[7]

The arena at night.
Inside United Supermarkets Arena prior to a graduation ceremony.
Victory Tower at the southeast entrance

Naming rights

File:United Spirit Arena Logo.jpg

Until 2014, the venue was known as United Spirit Arena.

Lubbock-based supermarket chain United Supermarkets purchased the naming rights to the facility under a 20-year, $10 million naming rights agreement with Texas Tech University in 1996. Until 2014, the arena was known as United Spirit Arena. Following a 10-year, $9.45 million naming rights extension, the arena was renamed United Supermarkets Arena. Funds from the 10-year naming rights extension will go towards facility renovations.^[8]

Usage

Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball

The first basketball game was played in the arena on November 19, 1999. Texas Tech Red Raiders lost 68–60 to the Indiana Hoosiers,^[9] coached by Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bob Knight, who would later become the head coach of Red Raiders basketball team.
On January 1, 2007, a 70–68 defeat of the New Mexico Lobos by the Texas Tech Red Raiders marked the 880th total win for Bob Knight, making him the winningest coach in men's college basketball history.
A Big 12 Conference record for student attendance was set February 25, 2014 against Kansas State.^[10]

NCAA Tournaments

NCAA Division I Women's Basketball First and Second Rounds: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2013

Other

Elton John's performance on February 8, 2000 was the first concert to be held at United Supermarkets Arena.
In the summer of 2002, Britney Spears brought her Dream Within a Dream Tour to the arena. After the second song, "(You Drive Me) Crazy", a power outage occurred and the rest of the concert had to be canceled. Spears, along with her tour manager, came onstage to explain the situation to the sold out crowd. Due to Spears being overbooked for the entire tour, there was no time to reschedule the concert.^[11]
United Supermarkets Arena hosted WWE Raw (the first Raw ever to be hosted in Lubbock) in May 2006.
On May 4, 2007, the Houston Comets with former Lady Raiders Sheryl Swoopes and Erin Grant played a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) exhibition game against the Detroit Shock with Plenette Pierson, also a former Lady Raider.^[12]
In 2008, Champions on Ice made its United Supermarkets Arena debut, having moved over from City Bank Coliseum. At the same time, Cirque du Soleil made its first Lubbock-area appearance.
On October 14, 2011, Taylor Swift made her first ever appearance at the United Supermarkets Arena with her Speak Now World Tour. Tickets for the show were sold out within twenty minutes after going on sale, the fastest sell-out in United Supermarkets Arena history.
On January 18, 2013, the United Supermarkets Arena hosted the first show in the final live tour of George Strait. He was supported by Martina McBride.
On March 17, 2013, Bon Jovi played the arena in what may possibly be Richie Sambora's last concert with the band
Paul McCartney played at the United Supermarkets Arena on October 2, 2014 as part of his Out There tour, having postponed his initial show date of June 14 due to illness.

Notes

References

^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "John T. Montford a Powerhouse at Tech, in Politics". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. January 11, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
^ "Texas Tech Breaking New Ground". Amarillo Globe-News. Associated Press. March 27, 1997. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
^ Altenbaumer, Kara (October 1, 1999). "A Grand Time on Tap for Unveiling of Spirit Arena". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
^ Fuquay, John (April 27, 1999). "Tech to Test Integrity of United Spirit Arena Balcony". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
^ "Buildings: Sports Facilities". Hill International. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
^ http://www.emporis.com/building/victorytower-lubbock-tx-usa
^ http://www.texastech.com/genrel/050214aaa.html
^ Rosetta, Randy (November 20, 1999). "Despite Falling Short, Red Raiders Pleased". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Archived from the original on February 21, 2006. Retrieved September 23, 2008.
^ Rose, Rex (February 26, 2014). "Tech breaks Big 12 attendance record, falls to Kansas State". The Daily Toreador. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
^ Gilbreth, Kristin (June 21, 2002). "Spears Not Returning Despite Arena Officials Plea". The Daily Toreador. Texas Tech University. Retrieved November 24, 2007.
^ "Tickets on Sale Now for WNBA Game in Lubbock". Texas Tech Athletics. April 2, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2007.

External links

[inflation-US-1] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.

[2] "John T. Montford a Powerhouse at Tech, in Politics". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. January 11, 2009. Retrieved November 10, 2013.

[Breaking-3] "Texas Tech Breaking New Ground". Amarillo Globe-News. Associated Press. March 27, 1997. Retrieved November 10, 2013.

[opening-4] Altenbaumer, Kara (October 1, 1999). "A Grand Time on Tap for Unveiling of Spirit Arena". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2013.

[5] Fuquay, John (April 27, 1999). "Tech to Test Integrity of United Spirit Arena Balcony". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved November 10, 2013.

[6] "Buildings: Sports Facilities". Hill International. Retrieved November 10, 2013.

[7] ttp://www.emporis.com/building/victorytower-lubbock-tx-usa

[8] ttp://www.texastech.com/genrel/050214aaa.html

[9] Rosetta, Randy (November 20, 1999). "Despite Falling Short, Red Raiders Pleased". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Archived from the original on February 21, 2006. Retrieved September 23, 2008.

[Attendance-10] Rose, Rex (February 26, 2014). "Tech breaks Big 12 attendance record, falls to Kansas State". The Daily Toreador. Retrieved 26 February 2014.

[11] Gilbreth, Kristin (June 21, 2002). "Spears Not Returning Despite Arena Officials Plea". The Daily Toreador. Texas Tech University. Retrieved November 24, 2007.

[12] "Tickets on Sale Now for WNBA Game in Lubbock". Texas Tech Athletics. April 2, 2007. Retrieved April 2, 2007.

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v t e Texas Tech Lady Raiders basketball
Arenas	Women's Gym City Bank Coliseum (1975–1999) United Supermarkets Arena (1999–present)
Culture & lore	Raider Red The Masked Rider "Fight, Raiders, Fight" "The Matador Song" Guns Up
Overview	Head coaches Players in the WNBA draft Seasons
Seasons	1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold

v t e Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball
Venues	Livestock Judging Pavilion (1925–1927) Tech Gymnasium (1927–1956) City Bank Coliseum (1956–1999) United Supermarkets Arena (1999–present)
Culture & lore	Raider Red The Masked Rider "Fight, Raiders, Fight" "The Matador Song" Guns Up Knight School
People	Head coaches NBA draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

v t e Music venues of Texas
Outdoor venues	Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Dos Equis Pavilion Germania Insurance Amphitheater Miller Outdoor Theatre Toyota Music Factory Zilker Park
Theaters and clubs	AT&T Performing Arts Center Anhalt Hall Aztec Theatre Bass Concert Hall Bass Performance Hall Bayou Music Center Billy Bob's Texas Cactus Cafe Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts Chautauqua Auditorium Emo's The Factory in Deep Ellum Fitzgerald's Gas Monkey Bar N' Grill Gas Monkey Live Gilley's Club Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts Granada Theater Gruene Hall Hobby Center for the Performing Arts Jefferson Theatre Jones Hall Julie Rogers Theater Long Center for the Performing Arts Main Street Crossing Majestic Theater Majestic Theatre Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House McFarlin Memorial Auditorium Moody Performance Hall Moody Theater Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center Music Hall at Fair Park Paramount Theatre Plaza Theatre San Angelo Performing Arts Coalition Smart Financial Centre Texas Hall Texas Trust CU Theatre at Grand Prairie Tobin Center for the Performing Arts Trees Dallas Wagner Noël Performing Arts Center Warehouse Live Will Rogers Auditorium Wortham Theater Center
Arenas	Amarillo National Center American Airlines Center American Bank Center Beaumont Civic Center Bert Ogden Arena Credit Union of Texas Event Center Comerica Center Convention Center Arena Dickies Arena Don Haskins Center El Paso County Coliseum Ford Arena Fort Worth Convention Center Frank Erwin Center Freeman Coliseum Frost Bank Center H-E-B Center Kay Yeager Coliseum Lubbock Memorial Civic Center Moody Coliseum NRG Arena The Oil Palace Payne Arena Toyota Center Sames Auto Arena United Supermarkets Arena
Stadiums	AT&T Stadium Alamodome Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium Ford Center at The Star NRG Stadium Toyota Stadium
Historic venues	Armadillo World Headquarters Bagdad Supper Club Balinese Room Cheatham Street Warehouse Cherry Springs Dance Hall Dallas City Limits Dallas Sportatorium HemisFair Arena Houston Music Hall Fair Park Coliseum Liberty Hall Liberty Lunch Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Neon Boots Dancehall & Saloon Old Quarter Acoustic Cafe Raul's Reunion Arena Sam Houston Coliseum Sam Houston Hall Sand Mountain Coffee House Skyliner Ballroom Southern Star Amphitheatre Texas Stadium Real Life Amphitheater Vulcan Gas Company
Festivals	Astroworld Festival Austin City Limits Music Festival Thin Line Fest Kerrville Folk Festival South by Southwest Denton Arts and Jazz Festival Wildflower! Arts and Music Festival Fortress Festival