The interior of Fairgrounds Coliseum after the most recent renovation
The Indiana Farmers Coliseum (originally Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum and formerly Pepsi Coliseum[2] and Fairgrounds Coliseum) is a 6,500-seat indoor multi-use arena, located on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. The Indiana Farmers Coliseum is home to both the Indy Fuel of the ECHL and the IUPUI Jaguars of the NCAA.
After Market Square Arena opened in 1974, the coliseum continued on as an alternate venue to the larger arena for events requiring less seating or overall space. This continues today after the Gainbridge Fieldhouse opened in 1999, and the subsequent demolition of Market Square Arena in 2001.
On October 26, 2012, the Coliseum held a "Lights Out" ceremony and closed for renovations.[4] On April 24, 2014, after a 17-month, $53 million renovation, the Coliseum re-opened.[5]
In December 2014, the Indiana Farmers Mutual Insurance Company entered into a ten-year agreement with the Indiana State Fair Commission to re-christen the arena as the Indiana Farmers Coliseum.[6]
On October 31, 1963, during a Holiday on Ice show, a liquefied petroleum gas leak at a concession stand caused an explosion which killed 81 people[7] and injured around 400 others.[8] A memorial plaque was dedicated 40 years later in the building, but it has since been removed. Another plaque honoring the explosion victims currently hangs inside the building's lobby.
The Pacers returned for a night when they played their first pre-season game of the 2008–09 season at the Pepsi Coliseum on October 8, 2008, hosting the then-New Orleans Hornets.[10] 7,439 people watched the Pacers lose to the Hornets 105–71. The Pacers wore uniforms based on the 1967 to 1971 uniform design. Former ABA Pacers George McGinnis, Darnell Hillman, Bob Netolicky, Don Buse, Jerry Harkness, Steve Green, Tom Thacker, Bill Newton, and Wayne Pack, attended the game and were recognized during a halftime ceremony.[11] During the game's first quarter, former Championship Pacers coach and current radio commentator Slick Leonard sat on the Pacers' bench as head coach, while then-head coach Jim O'Brien joined Mark Boyle for the radio broadcast.[12]
The Indiana Ice of the United States Hockey League played at the Coliseum from 2004 to 2012, leaving due to the renovation. The Ice won the USHL's Clark Cup in 2009 while playing in the building. They did not return to the Coliseum upon the venue reopening, opting for withdrawal from competition or dormancy until another venue could be secured.[13] Since 2014 the Indy Fuel hockey team has played in the arena. The Fuel are an ECHL team affiliated with the Chicago Blackhawks. The 2023–2024 season will be the last for the Fuel at the Coliseum before they leave for the new Fishers Event Center currently under construction in suburban Fishers.[14]
The Coliseum hosted the American Hockey League's Calder Cup Final in 1942, 1943 and 1950; the International Hockey League's Turner Cup Final in 1957, 1958 and 1990; the Central Hockey League's Adams Cup Final in 1982, 1983 and 1984; and the United States Hockey League's Clark Cup Final in 2009. Eight of Indianapolis' nine hockey championship teams called the Coliseum home. The other was the 2014 Indiana Ice, who split their schedule between Bankers Life Fieldhouse and Pan Am Pavilion.
On January 25, 2019, the Horizon League announced its Men's and Women's Basketball Championships would take place at the Coliseum, starting March 9–10, 2020.[15]
The Coliseum also hosts Budweiser Fight Night Boxing; the Indianapolis Boat, Sport & Travel Show; the Hoosier Horse Fair; high school and college commencement ceremonies; and many concerts featuring national acts. On April 27, 2016, Donald Trump held a rally for his presidential campaign in the Coliseum.[16]
During the winter months, public ice skating is offered at the Coliseum.
With the NCAA electing to hold the entirety of the 2021 Division I men's basketball tournament within the state of Indiana to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Coliseum served as one of the sites hosting first and second round games.[17]
On April 13, 2021 the Indiana Fever announced that they would play the last 12 home games of the 2021 WNBA season at the Coliseum due to the renovations at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.[18]
On November 10, 2021, professional wrestling promotion All Elite Wrestling hosted an episode of their weekly television show AEW Dynamite from the arena.[19]
The Beach Boys – December 29, 1964, with The Fantastic Four Wheels and Sir Richard & The Mark IV's, November 18, 1966, with Chad & Jeremy, The Dawn Five and The Boys Next Door, and August 26, 1982
