UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena

UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena
Former names	Milwaukee Arena (1950–74); MECCA Arena (1974–95); Wisconsin Center Arena (1995–2000); U.S. Cellular Arena (2000–14)
Location	400 W Kilbourn Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53203; United States
Coordinates	Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Owner	Wisconsin Center District
Operator	Wisconsin Center District
Capacity	12,700 (maximum); 10,783 (basketball); 9,500 (indoor soccer)
Surface	Maple basketball floor, concrete, ice, or Astroturf
Construction
Broke ground	November 3, 1948
Opened	April 9, 1950
Renovated	1998
Construction cost	$7.6 million; ($74.7 million in 2024 dollars)
Architect	Eschweiler & Eschweiler
General contractor	Hunzinger Construction Co.
Tenants
	Milwaukee Wave (MISL) (1984–1987, 2003–present); Brewcity Bruisers (WFTDA) (2005–present); Milwaukee Panthers (NCAA) (1992–1998, 2003–2011, 2013–present); Green Bay Chill (LFL) (2014-Present); Milwaukee Iron (AFL) (2010; 1 playoff game) Milwaukee Hawks (NBA) (1951–1955); Milwaukee Bucks (NBA) (1968–1988); Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) (1977–1988); Marquette Warriors (NCAA) (1974–1989); Milwaukee Bonecrushers (CIFL) (2008–2009)

UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (originally Milwaukee Arena and formerly MECCA Arena, Wisconsin Center Arena and U.S. Cellular Arena) is an indoor arena located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The arena, which seats as many as 12,700 people and offers 41,000 feet of floor space, is part of a larger downtown campus, that includes the Milwaukee Theatre and Wisconsin Center.

The arena was part of the MECCA Complex from 1974 until the 1995 opening of the Midwest Express Center.

History

It opened in 1950 and was one of the first to accommodate the needs of broadcast television. It was folded into the MECCA complex when it opened in 1974. It is also known for its former unique basketball court painted by Robert Indiana in 1978, with large rainbow 'M's taking up both half-courts representing Milwaukee.

Since the 1960s, the Arena has held a number of concerts by high-profile performers. On September 4, 1964, The Beatles played their only Milwaukee concert, at the Arena, to a sold-out crowd of screaming fans. Folk-rock icon Bob Dylan played a two-night stand there in mid-October as part of his Fall 1981 tour.

It was home to the Milwaukee Hawks (1951-55) and the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA (1968 to 1988), and hosted the 1977 NBA All-Star Game before an audience of 10,938. The venue was also home to Marquette University's men's basketball team along with the International Hockey League Milwaukee Admirals. These teams all moved to the BMO Harris Bradley Center upon the newer arena's opening in 1988.

In 1994, the Wisconsin Center District (WCD), a state organization, was created in order to fund the Midwest Express Center, and, in 1995 the MECCA complex was folded into this, including the Arena (the BMO Harris Bradley Center is owned by a separate authority). Following a major overhaul in 1998, the arena is now home to the Milwaukee Wave of the Major Indoor Soccer League (including the 2006 MISL All-Star game) and is the Milwaukee venue for Disney on Ice. It has also hosted professional wrestling events, including WCW SuperBrawl II in 1992, WWF King of the Ring 1996, WCW Clash of the Champions in 1997, WWF Over the Edge in 1998 and WCW Mayhem in 2000. It was at the forementioned King Of The Ring card where "Stone Cold" Steve Austin first uttered his now-famous "Austin 3:16" catchphrase.

The WCD added the Wisconsin Athletic Walk of Fame alongside the U.S. Cellular Arena in 2001. At the end of this public promenade is a Wisconsin Historical Marker noting the location where Christopher Sholes invented the first practical typewriter, featuring the QWERTY keyboard layout.

As the MECCA, the building hosted the 1984 NCAA Mideast first and second round games. The U.S. Cellular Arena also hosted all or part of every Horizon League men's basketball conference tournament from 2003 to 2011.

In 2008 and 2009, it was home to the Milwaukee Bonecrushers of the Continental Indoor Football League.^[5]

On August 7, 2010, the arena hosted an Arena Football League playoff game between the Milwaukee Mustangs and the Chicago Rush. The Iron played its 2010 regular season home games at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, but the ongoing installation of the new center court scoreboard in that venue forced the home playoff games to be played at the U.S. Cellular Arena, where the Milwaukee Mustangs would go on to win.

It is also home to the Brewcity Bruisers roller derby league.

Milwaukee Panthers connection and renaming

The arena has been the home of the Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team from 1993 to 1998, 2003 to 2012, and 2013 to current. The Panthers played their 2012-2013 home games at the 3,500-seat Klotsche Center on UWM's east side campus. The move generated complaints from some UWM fans and attendance lagged as the team limped to its worst record since the 1990s. After Amanda Braun was named UWM’s athletic director in March 2013, she said she would re-examine the decision to move games from the U.S. Cellular Arena. In July 2013, UWM officials reached a 5-year contract with the arena owner, Wisconsin Center District, that runs through the 2017-2018 season.^[6]

U.S. Cellular's naming rights expired on May 31, 2014, and they did not renew their contract.^[7] On June 26, 2014, it was announced that the Arena would be renamed the UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena, as part of an agreement which would run at least through 2024, with UWM having an option to extend it through 2029.^[8] The deal additionally makes the arena officially the major site for UWM events such as graduation ceremonies, a role it had already taken for years before.

Milwaukee Bonecrushers' Quarterback Ryan Maiuri taking a snap against the Chicago Slaughter on March 21, 2008 at U.S. Cellular Arena.

In August 2015, it was revealed that the Milwaukee Admirals were possibly considering moving back to UWM Panther Arena in the next few seasons. Their current home, BMO Harris Bradley Center, is set to be replaced by the new Milwaukee Bucks Arena, and the Admirals have not expressed any interest of moving into the arena, and in fact, have said they are actually against moving into it. Logically, the move could make sense for a few reasons: more open scheduling dates, the chance to actually co-operate the arena rather than just being a tenant, and more marketing in the arena, which they are hardly able to do in Bradley Center. Moreover, Panther Arena's operators have said they would welcome the Admirals moving into the arena.

Seating capacity

The seating capacity for basketball has changed as follows:

11,046 (1950-1961)^[9]
11,138 (1961-1968)^[10]
10,746 (1968-1973)^[11]
10,938 (1973-1980)^[12]
11,052 (1980-1998)^[13]
11,358 (1998-2004)^[14]
10,783 (2004–present)^[15]

References

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↑ On This Day in Wisconsin History
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↑ Walker, Don. "Former U.S. Cellular Arena to be named for UWM Panthers" Milwaukee Journal Sentinel June 26, 2014
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External links

Official Site

Events and tenants
Preceded by Wharton Field House	Home of the Milwaukee Hawks 1951 – 1955	Succeeded by Kiel Auditorium
Preceded by first arena	Home of the Milwaukee Bucks 1968 – 1988	Succeeded by Bradley Center
Preceded by The Spectrum	Host of the NBA All-Star Game 1977	Succeeded by Omni Coliseum

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[4] On This Day in Wisconsin History

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v t e Atlanta Hawks
Founded in 1946 Formerly the Buffalo Bisons (1946) and the Tri-Cities Blackhawks (1946–1951); played in Milwaukee (1951–1955) and St. Louis (1955–1968) Based in Atlanta, Georgia
Franchise	All-time roster Draft history Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Wharton Field House Milwaukee Arena Kiel Auditorium St. Louis Arena Alexander Memorial Coliseum Omni Coliseum Lakefront Arena Georgia Dome State Farm Arena
Personnel	Owner(s) Tony Ressler Jami Gertz Grant Hill Sara Blakely Jesse Itzler Steven Price Rick Schnall President Vacant General manager Travis Schlenk Head coach Nate McMillan (interim)
G League affiliate	College Park Skyhawks
Retired numbers	9 21 23 44 55 59
NBA Championships	1958
Culture and lore	The Human Highlight Film Pistol Pete Phantom Buzzer Game Life as We Know It
Category

v t e Milwaukee Bucks
Founded in 1968 Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Franchise	Radio Network All-time roster Draft history 1968 Records Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	MECCA Arena Bradley Center Fiserv Forum
Personnel	Owner(s) Wes Edens Marc Lasry Jamie Dinan Mike Fascitelli President Peter Feigin General manager Jon Horst Head coach Mike Budenholzer
G League affiliate	Wisconsin Herd
Retired numbers	1 2 4 8 10 14 16 32 33
NBA Championships	1971 2021
Culture and lore	Radio network The Big O Bango The Fastest Expansion Champion MECCA Court Fear the Deer The Greek Freak

v t e Milwaukee Admirals
Founded in 1970 Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The Franchise	History Records Players Current season All articles
Arenas	UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena BMO Harris Bradley Center
Coaches	Claude Noel Lane Lambert Kirk Muller Ian Herbers Dean Evason
Rivalries	Chicago Wolves Peoria Rivermen Rockford IceHogs
Calder Cup	2004
Affiliates	Nashville Predators (NHL) Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL}

v t e Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball
Venues	Marquette Gymnasium (1922–1974) Milwaukee Arena (1974–1988) BMO Harris Bradley Center (1988–present) Al McGuire Center (practice)
Culture & lore	"Ring Out Ahoya" "Jump Around Guy"
People	Head coaches NBA players
Seasons	1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 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 1999–00 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
NCAA national championship in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball
Venues	Baker Fieldhouse (1956–1977) J. Martin Klotsche Center (1977–1992) U.S. Cellular Arena (1992–1998) J. Martin Klotsche Center (1998–2003) U.S. Cellular Arena (2003–2012) Klotsche Center (2012–2013) UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (2013–present)
Rivalries	Rivalry records
Culture & lore	History
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–00 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 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 1999–00 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

UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena

Contents

History

Milwaukee Panthers connection and renaming

Seating capacity

See also

References

External links

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Construction

Former names	Milwaukee Arena (1950–74) MECCA Arena (1974–95) Wisconsin Center Arena (1995–2000) U.S. Cellular Arena (2000–14)
Location	400 W Kilbourn Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53203 United States
Coordinates	Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Owner	Wisconsin Center District
Operator	Wisconsin Center District
Capacity	12,700 (maximum) 10,783 (basketball) 9,500 (indoor soccer)
Surface	Maple basketball floor, concrete, ice, or Astroturf
Broke ground	November 3, 1948^[1]
Opened	April 9, 1950^[4]
Renovated	1998
Construction cost	$7.6 million ($74.7 million in 2024 dollars^[2])
Architect	Eschweiler & Eschweiler
General contractor	Hunzinger Construction Co.^[3]
Tenants
Milwaukee Wave (MISL) (1984–1987, 2003–present) Brewcity Bruisers (WFTDA) (2005–present) Milwaukee Panthers (NCAA) (1992–1998, 2003–2011, 2013–present) Green Bay Chill (LFL) (2014-Present) Milwaukee Iron (AFL) (2010; 1 playoff game) Milwaukee Hawks (NBA) (1951–1955) Milwaukee Bucks (NBA) (1968–1988) Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) (1977–1988) Marquette Warriors (NCAA) (1974–1989) Milwaukee Bonecrushers (CIFL) (2008–2009)

v t e Venues of the Legends Football League
Eastern Conference	Arena at Gwinnett Center Royal Farms Arena Huntington Center Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena Ralston Arena
Western Conference	Citizens Business Bank Arena Orleans Arena ShoWare Center Sears Centre UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena
LFL Canada	Abbotsford Centre Brandt Centre SaskTel Centre Stampede Corral
LFL Australia	AAMI Park nib Stadium Skilled Stadium Centrebet Stadium Penrith
Former Venues	BB&T Center CFE Arena Citrus Bowl Cotton Bowl Dick's Sporting Goods Park FIU Stadium Hard Rock Live Hershey Centre Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Quicken Loans Arena QuikTrip Park Resch Center Ricoh Coliseum Sovereign Center Sun National Bank Center Tampa Bay Times Forum Target Center Thomas & Mack Center Toyota Park Valley View Casino Center

v t e Current arenas in the Major Arena Soccer League
Eastern Conference	Adirondack Bank Center Cable Dahmer Arena Family Arena New Holland Arena SECU Arena UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena
Western Conference	accesso ShoWare Center Arena Corner Sport Arena Monterrey Credit Union of Texas Event Center Mesquite Arena Pechanga Arena Toyota Arena

v t e Current venues in the Women's Flat Track Derby Association
East region	Abe Stark Rink Shriners Auditorium Class of 1923 Arena D.C. Armory Dorton Arena Du Burns Arena Earls Court Exhibition Centre Greater Richmond Convention Haygood Skating Center Inline Skating Club of America Independence Family Fun Center John F. Kennedy Memorial Coliseum John Jay Doghouse Kennedy Arena Overlook Activities Center Portland Exposition Building Rhode Island Convention Center Rainbow Rink Romp'n Roll Roller Skating Rink Skate Safe America Sports Centre at MCC Le Taz
West region	1stBank Center Albuquerque Convention Center Bladium Castle Sports Club Climate Pledge Arena Colorado Springs City Auditorium Everett Community College Lane County Fairgrounds Portland Expo Center Roller King Roseville Salt Palace Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium Skateland Spartan Recreation Center Sport Center of Las Vegas TISC Veterans Memorial Auditorium
North Central region	Allen County War Memorial Coliseum Alliant Energy Center The Bunker Central Ohio Roller Hockey Cincinnati Gardens Dave Andreychuk Arena Detroit Masonic Temple Indiana Farmers Coliseum Indiana Convention Center Midwest Sport Hockey Complex Minneapolis Convention Center Rivertown Sports Roy Wilkins Auditorium Sioux Falls Expo Building Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Coliseum Swonder Ice Arena UIC Pavilion UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena Wolstein Center
South Central region	Austin Convention Center Bayou Music Center Fair Park Coliseum Knoxville Civic Coliseum Mid-America Center MidSouth Fairgrounds Municipal Auditorium North Florida Fairgrounds NYTEX Sports Centre Pershing Center Rollercade Starlight Skatium Tennessee State Fairground Sports Arena Tulsa Convention Center UNO Human Performance Center USA Skateplex Von Braun Center Wichita Ice Center Yaarab Shrine Center