Following the January 2020 death of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and 7 others in a helicopter crash, the city of Los Angeles designated August 24 as Kobe Bryant Day, on which they announced that between the boulevards of Olympic and Martin Luther King Jr., Figueroa Street will be renamed Kobe Bryant Boulevard to honor his memory; this area includes the address of Crypto.com Arena.[12]
Description
Crypto.com Arena has 950,000 square feet (88,257.9 m2) of total space, with a 94-foot (28.7 m) by 200-foot (61.0 m) arena floor. It stands 150 feet (45.7 m) tall.[9] The arena seats up to 19,067 for basketball, 18,145 for ice hockey, and around 20,000 for concerts or other sporting events.[2][10] Two-thirds of the arena's seating, including 2,500 club seats, are in the lower bowl. There are also 160 luxury suites, including 15 event suites, on three levels between the lower and upper bowls.[9] The arena's attendance record is held by the fight between World WBAWelterweight Champion Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley with a crowd of 20,820, set on January 25, 2009.[13]
Star Plaza
Star Plaza entrance at Crypto.com Arena
Outside the arena at the Star Plaza are statues of famous Los Angeles athletes and broadcasters. Additionally, the Los Angeles Kings Monument was erected in Star Plaza in 2016.[14]
Majestic Realty Co. and AEG were scouring the Los Angeles area for available land to develop an arena when they were approached by Steve Soboroff, then president of the LA Recreation and Parks Commission. Soboroff requested that they consider building the arena in downtown Los Angeles adjacent to the convention center. This proposal intrigued Roski and Anschutz, and soon a plan to develop the arena was devised.[24]
Months of negotiations ensued between Anschutz and city officials, with Roski and John Semcken of Majestic Realty Co. spearheading the negotiations for the real estate developers. The negotiations grew contentious at times and the real estate developers threatened to pull out altogether on more than one occasion.[24] The main opposition came from Councilman Joel Wachs, who opposed utilizing public funds to subsidize the proposed project,[23][27] and councilwoman Rita Walters, who objected to parts of it.[28]
Ultimately, the developers and city leaders reached an agreement, and in 1997, construction broke ground on the new building, which opened two years later. It was financed privately at a cost of US$375 million and was named for the office-supply company Staples, Inc., which was one of the center's corporate sponsors that paid for naming rights.[9] Staples' 20-year naming rights deal was renewed in 2009.[29] The arena opened on October 17, 1999, with a Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band concert as its inaugural event.[30]
On October 21, 2009, the arena celebrated its tenth anniversary.[31] To commemorate the occasion, the venue's official web site nominated 25 of the arena's greatest moments from its first ten years with fans voting on the top ten.[32][33]
The arena in 2016, prior to a Kings game featuring the new jumbotron.
During the late summer of 2010, modifications were made to the arena, including refurbished locker rooms for the Lakers, Kings, and Clippers and the installation of a new US$10 million HD center-hung video scoreboard and jumbotron, replacing the original one that had been in place since the building opened in 1999.[34] The Panasonic Live 4HD scoreboard was officially unveiled on September 22, 2010, as AEG and Staples Center executives, as well as player representatives from the Lakers (Sasha Vujacic), Clippers (Craig Smith), and Kings (Matt Greene) were on hand for the presentation.
On January 15, 2018, in the aftermath of an NBA basketball game between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Clippers, point guard Chris Paul utilized a secret tunnel (connecting the away team's locker room to the backdoor of the Clippers locker room) to confront former Clipper teammates Austin Rivers and Blake Griffin. Paul was joined by teammates Trevor Ariza, James Harden, and Gerald Green to confront the opponents, which only resulted in verbal altercations.[35]
Following the sudden death of former basketball player Kobe Bryant in January 2020, a number of media outlets picked up on a phrase used by some, referring to the arena as "The House That Kobe Built",[36][37] due to his historic 20-year career with the Lakers.
On November 16, 2021, it was announced that the naming rights to the Staples Center had been acquired by Singapore-based cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com, renaming it Crypto.com Arena effective December 25, 2021 (with the changeover coinciding with the Lakers' nationally televised Christmas Day game). The deal was reported to be valued at $700 million over 20 years, in comparison to the $116 million paid by Staples under its previous 20-year agreement.[38][29] The name change was met with opposition and many fans still refer to this arena as the Staples Center.[39]
In 2022, the arena began to undergo a multi-phase renovation, expected to be completed in 2024; the first phase over the 2022 NBA and NHL offseasons included new video boards and ribbon displays, and updated concessions. There are plans for the City View Terrace to be converted into an indoor outdoor deck, a new area known as the Tunnel Club, Chick Hearn Court to be converted into a pedestrian plaza between the arena and the rest of L.A. Live, and updated player facilities such as locker rooms.[40]
After the American singer Michael Jackson died in 2009, a televised memorial service was held at the arena. Its operator, AEG, had promoted the This Is It concert residency that Jackson had been scheduled to perform at The O2 Arena in London.[42] Jackson had been rehearsing at the arena in the weeks prior to his death; he last had rehearsed there approximately 12 hours before his death (on the same day).
Taylor Swift has performed 16 sellouts at Crypto.com Arena—the most of any performer at the venue.[45] On August 21, 2015, prior to one of her performances on the 1989 Tour, Kobe Bryant presented Swift with a banner commemorating this achievement, which was hung in the arena's rafters. The Taylor Swift banner, however, became the subject of a curse among Lakers and Kings fans, who suspected that the banner was contributing to their teams' respective playoff droughts. Eventually, the Kings began to hide the Taylor Swift banner during home games, and the banner was taken down entirely in December 2020.[46][45]
Mexican musicians Gloria Trevi and Alejandra Guzmán played two sellout shows at the arena in 2017.[47]Green Day closed out the Super Bowl Music Fest on February 12, 2022. They played well past midnight, going past their planned setlist and improvising an encore of deep tracks.
Rapper Nipsey Hussle's memorial service was held at the venue on April 11, 2019.[48]
Grammy Awards
The annual Grammy Awards ceremony has been held at Crypto.com Arena since 2000, with the exception of 2003, 2018, 2021 and 2022. As of 2023, the venue has hosted the Grammy Awards 20 times, hosting more than any other venue in the history of the Grammy Awards.
Prior to the 2006–07 NBA season, the lighting inside the arena was modified for Lakers games. The lights were focused only on the court itself (hence the promotional Lights Out campaign), reminiscent of the Lakers' early years at The Forum. The initial fan reaction was positive and has been a fixture on home games since.[52] The Daktronics see-through shot clock was first installed prior to the 2008–09 NBA season.[citation needed] The Clippers adopted the new see-through shot clock prior to the 2010–11 NBA season.[citation needed] For Sparks games, the court used is named after Sparks player Lisa Leslie, and was officially named prior to the 2009 home opener against the Shock on June 23, 2006.[53]
The Los Angeles Kings hosted the 2010 NHL Entry Draft at the arena in June 2010. In 2012, the Clippers, Kings, and Lakers all advanced to their leagues' respective playoffs,[54] with the Kings ultimately playing their first Stanley Cup Finals at the arena; on June 11, the Kings defeated the New Jersey Devils in Game 6 to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.[55]
The Lakers unveiled a new hardwood court before their preseason game on October 13, 2012. Taking a cue from soccer clubs, the primary center court logo was adorned with 16 stars, representing the first 16 championships the Lakers franchise had won.[56] A 17th star was added to the court and unveiled before their regular season opener on December 22, 2020, to represent the franchise winning its 17th championship in the 2020 NBA Finals.[57]
Panoramic view during a Lakers game
Crypto.com Arena has hosted the following championship events:
2000: On June 19, 2000, the Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers 116–111 in game 6, which took place at home, to win their twelfth championship title. This was also notable for being their first championship since 1988.
2001: The Lakers hosted games 1 and 2 versus the Philadelphia 76ers. They eventually won the series in five games.
2002: The Lakers hosted games 1 and 2 versus the New Jersey Nets. They eventually swept the series in four games.
2004: The Lakers hosted games 1 and 2 versus the Detroit Pistons. They eventually lost the series in five games.
2008: The Lakers hosted games 3, 4 and 5 versus the Boston Celtics. They eventually lost the series in six games.
2009: The Lakers hosted games 1 and 2 versus the Orlando Magic. They eventually won the series in five games.
2010: On June 17, 2010, the Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics 83–79 in game 7, which took place at home, to win their sixteenth championship title.
2012: On June 11, 2012, the Kings captured their first Stanley Cup in franchise history after defeating the New Jersey Devils 6–1 in game 6.[58]
2014: On June 13, 2014, the Kings captured their second Stanley Cup in franchise history after defeating the New York Rangers 3–2 in double overtime of game 5.
In 2018, the arena hosted Monster Jam for the very first time. In 2019, the PBR Unleash the Beast Series hosted its Iron Cowboy event at the arena, marking the first PBR event to be held there.[59] On June 9, 2019, the ACE Family hosted a charity basketball game against singer Chris Brown.[citation needed]
Crypto.com Arena is expected to host basketball during the 2028 Summer Olympics.[61] Per IOC rules, the venue must be referred to under a generic name for the duration of the Games.[62]
Along with hosting many episodes of Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown, such as the latter's debut on Fox on October 4, 2019, Crypto.com Arena has also hosted the following WWE pay-per-views:
A broadcast of WCW Monday Nitro was held at the arena on January 24, 2000.
The last WWE event the arena hosted before its name got changed to "Crypto.com Arena" was SmackDown on December 10, 2021. The arena hosted SmackDown and the 2023 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony on March 31 as well as NXT Stand & Deliver on April 1 and Raw on April 3, as part of WrestleMania 39 weekend.[64]
Staples Center was named Best Major Concert Venue for 1998 and Arena of the Year for 1999, 2000 and 2001 by Pollstar Magazine and has been nominated each year since 2000.[10] In February 2013, PETA named the arena the most "vegetarian-friendly" arena in the NBA.[71]
The Crypto.com Arena is part of a 4-million-square-foot (371,612.2 m2) development by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) adjoining the arena and the Los Angeles Convention Center. The development, known as L.A. Live, broke ground on September 15, 2005. L.A. Live is designed to offer entertainment, retail and residential programming in the downtown Los Angeles area.[72][73]
Image gallery
The arena in 2012, when it was known as the Staples Center
^ abMandell, Jason. "The Staples Center Score". Los Angeles Downtown News - The Voice of Downtown Los Angeles. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved November 16, 2017.
^Howard, Andrew (October 21, 2009). "Happy Birthday STAPLES Center". Los Angeles Kings. Archived from the original on February 27, 2012. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
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