American Airlines Center
Encyclopedia
The American Airlines Center (commonly AAC) is a multi-purpose arena
, located in the Victory Park neighborhood, near downtown
Dallas, Texas
.
It is home to the Dallas Mavericks
of the NBA
, and the Dallas Stars
of the NHL
.
The arena is also used for concerts and other live entertainment.
The arena is also locally known to Mavericks fans as "The House that Dirk Built" in reference to the Dallas Mavericks star player, Dirk Nowitzki
, and to Stars fans as "The House that Mike Built" for Stars once great player, Mike Modano
.
, and the Dallas Stars were indicating their desire for a new facility to replace the dated Reunion Arena
. Dallas taxpayers approved a new hotel tax and rental car tax to pay for a new facility to cover a portion of the funding, with the two benefiting teams, the Mavericks and the Stars, picking up the remaining costs, including cost overruns. The new arena was to be built just north of Woodall Rodgers Freeway
near Interstate 35E
on the site of an old power plant.
On March 18, 1999, American Airlines
announced that it would be acquiring the naming rights for the arena for US$
195 million. American Airlines is headquartered in Fort Worth and is based at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
.
On July 27, 2001, the facility opened with the largest ribbon-cutting ceremony ever, according to the Guinness Book of Records
. The first event occurred the next day with an Eagles concert. On the next night, the arena hosted the last show of Michael Flatley's
Feet of Flames
tour. The first sporting event took place on August 19, 2001 with the Dallas Sidekicks
of the World Indoor Soccer League
taking on the San Diego Sockers.
Principal design work was carried out by David M. Schwarz Architectural Services of Washington D.C. The American Airlines Center was designed to be the heart of a new urban, commercial area designed to reinvigorate the city of Dallas called Victory Park. The facility itself features a conservative, traditional design with sweeping brick façades and smooth arches, and has been graced with a number of awards (below). The interior includes retractable seating, public art and a state-of-the-art technological arena. Because of the Quonset hut
-like appearance of its roof and the fact that American Airlines holds the naming rights some fans have come to refer to it as "The Hangar".
On the south side of the arena AT&T
Plaza (also called Victory Plaza)serves as the principal entrance into the facility, designed by artist Athena Tacha
in 2000. The plaza provides an open space with fountains flanked by retail and office buildings. With several high-definition video
displays from Daktronics
mounted on the side of the arena and office buildings, the plaza is often used for outdoor events and movie showings.
Sports
Wrestling
Concerts
Other Info
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Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...
, located in the Victory Park neighborhood, near downtown
Downtown Dallas
Downtown Dallas is the Central Business District in Dallas, Texas USA, located in the geographic center of the city. The area termed "Downtown" has traditionally been defined as bounded by the downtown freeway loop: bounded on the east by I-345 Downtown Dallas is the Central Business District...
Dallas, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
It is home to the Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
of the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
, and the Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
of the NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
.
The arena is also used for concerts and other live entertainment.
The arena is also locally known to Mavericks fans as "The House that Dirk Built" in reference to the Dallas Mavericks star player, Dirk Nowitzki
Dirk Nowitzki
Dirk Werner Nowitzki is a German professional basketball player who plays for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association...
, and to Stars fans as "The House that Mike Built" for Stars once great player, Mike Modano
Mike Modano
Michael Thomas Modano, Jr. is a retired American professional ice hockey player, who most notably played for the Minnesota North Stars/Dallas Stars franchise. He is the all-time goal-scoring and points leader amongst American-born players in the NHL, as well as the last active player in the NHL...
.
History and construction
By 1998, the Dallas Mavericks, then owned by H. Ross Perot, Jr.H. Ross Perot, Jr.
Henry Ross Perot, Jr. is a real estate developer and Chairman of the Board of Perot Systems. He is the only son of Ross Perot.-Early life:...
, and the Dallas Stars were indicating their desire for a new facility to replace the dated Reunion Arena
Reunion Arena
Reunion Arena was an indoor arena, in the Reunion district of downtown Dallas, Texas . It held 18,293 for basketball and 17,001 for ice hockey.It was demolished in November 2009 and the site was cleared by the end of the year.-History:...
. Dallas taxpayers approved a new hotel tax and rental car tax to pay for a new facility to cover a portion of the funding, with the two benefiting teams, the Mavericks and the Stars, picking up the remaining costs, including cost overruns. The new arena was to be built just north of Woodall Rodgers Freeway
State Highway Spur 366 (Texas)
Spur 366, also named Woodall Rodgers Freeway, is a highway that connects Interstate 35E to Interstate 345 in central Dallas, Texas...
near Interstate 35E
Interstate 35E (Texas)
Interstate 35E , an Interstate Highway, is the eastern half of Interstate 35 where it splits to serve different cities in Texas. I-35 splits into two branch routes, I-35W and I-35E at Hillsboro. I-35E runs north for , maintaining I-35's sequence of exit numbers. It runs through Dallas before...
on the site of an old power plant.
On March 18, 1999, American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
announced that it would be acquiring the naming rights for the arena for US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
195 million. American Airlines is headquartered in Fort Worth and is based at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is located between the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, and is the busiest airport in the U.S. state of Texas...
.
On July 27, 2001, the facility opened with the largest ribbon-cutting ceremony ever, according to the Guinness Book of Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
. The first event occurred the next day with an Eagles concert. On the next night, the arena hosted the last show of Michael Flatley's
Michael Flatley
Michael Ryan Flatley is an American Irish dancer, choreographer, actor, musician and occasional television presenter. He became internationally known for Irish dance shows Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Feet of Flames, and Celtic Tiger...
Feet of Flames
Feet of Flames
Michael Flatley's Feet of Flames is an Irish dance show directed by Michael Flatley and scored by Ronan Hardiman.-Feet of Flames:Hyde Park:Feet of Flames was created in 1998 by dancer Michael Flatley, made famous by the musical Riverdance...
tour. The first sporting event took place on August 19, 2001 with the Dallas Sidekicks
Dallas Sidekicks
The Dallas Sidekicks were one of the longest operating professional soccer teams, either indoor or outdoor, in the United States, based in Dallas, Texas, and operating from 1984 until suspending operations following the 2004 season. The team was founded as a member of the original Major Indoor...
of the World Indoor Soccer League
World Indoor Soccer League
The World Indoor Soccer League was a United States based indoor soccer league that existed from 1998 to 2001 and consisted of nine teams.-History:...
taking on the San Diego Sockers.
Design
Quonset hut
A Quonset hut is a lightweight prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized steel having a semicircular cross section. The design was based on the Nissen hut developed by the British during World War I...
-like appearance of its roof and the fact that American Airlines holds the naming rights some fans have come to refer to it as "The Hangar".
On the south side of the arena AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
Plaza (also called Victory Plaza)serves as the principal entrance into the facility, designed by artist Athena Tacha
Athena Tacha
Athena Tacha , is best known in the fields of environmental public sculpture and conceptual art, but has also worked extensively in photography, film and artists’ books...
in 2000. The plaza provides an open space with fountains flanked by retail and office buildings. With several high-definition video
High-definition video
High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...
displays from Daktronics
Daktronics
Daktronics is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video board, scoreboards, digital billboards and related products. The company is best known for its electronic LED displays...
mounted on the side of the arena and office buildings, the plaza is often used for outdoor events and movie showings.
Awards
American Airlines Center – Awards 2001–Present- American Builders and Contractors North Texas Excellence in Construction Award of Merit, 2007 – American Airlines Center Platinum Club Renovation
- Readers Pick, Best Sports Venue, 2007 -Dallas Observer
- Concert Venue of the Year, 2006 – Pollstar Magazine
- Slam Dunk Award, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007 – Harlem Globetrotters
- Top Dog Venue of the Year, 2003 – Tour Guide Magazine
- "Voice of the Fan" Program, 2002 & 2003 – Top ranking facility in most customer services and design related categories
- Best Sports Venue, 2002 & 2003 – Dallas ObserverDallas ObserverThe Dallas Observer is a free alternative weekly newspaper distributed around the Dallas, Texas . At its inception, it was conceived as a weekly local arts and cinema review publication, with the credo "Advocate for Excellence in the Arts" on the cover. For a time during the early years, the paper...
- Facility of Merit, 2002 – Athletic Business
- QUOIN Award, 2002 – Associated General Contractors of America/Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter
- Engineering Excellence Award, 2002 – American Council of Engineering Companies
- Real Estate Deals Award, 2002 – Dallas Business Journal
- Project of the Year Award, 2002 – Masonry Construction
- Record for Longest Ribbon and Largest Ribbon Cutting, 2001 – Gunniess Book of World RecordsGuinness World RecordsGuinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
- Best New Major Concert Venue for 2001 – Pollstar Magazine
- Phoenix Award, 2001 – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Golden Trowel Award of Excellence, 2001 – United Masonry Contractors Association
- International Excellence in Masonry Award, 2001 – Masonry Contractors Association of America
- Mega Project Over $100 Million, 2001 – Associated Builders and Contractors
- Best of 2001 Judges Award, 2001 – F.W. Dodge
- Outstanding Project Team of the Year, 2001 – American Subcontractor Association
- Outstanding Project Over $25 Million, 2001 – American Subcontractor Association
- Minority Business Development Agency Outstanding Corporate Award for its M/WBE achievements, 2000 & 2001
- City of Dallas Senior Affairs Commission and Friends of Senior Affairs has recognized Center Operating Co. with the 2003 Employer of the Year award, which was presented at MayFair 2003, the City's Fourteenth Annual event for Older Americans Month
Notable events
- After the Dallas DesperadosDallas DesperadosThe Dallas Desperados were a professional Arena Football team. The Desperados played in the Southern Division of the now-defunct Arena Football League from 2002 to 2008....
played their first season in the AAC, they moved to nearby Reunion ArenaReunion ArenaReunion Arena was an indoor arena, in the Reunion district of downtown Dallas, Texas . It held 18,293 for basketball and 17,001 for ice hockey.It was demolished in November 2009 and the site was cleared by the end of the year.-History:...
and played there for their second season. For their third season, they moved back to the AAC, where they played until the league folded. - The AAC hosted the Big 12 Basketball TournamentBig 12 Men's Basketball TournamentThe Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament is the championship men's basketball tournament in the Big 12 Conference. It is a single-elimination tournament of four rounds, with the top four seeds getting byes in the first round...
in 20032003 Big 12 Men's Basketball TournamentThe 2003 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament was played at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, making it the first time the tournament was ever played outside Kansas City.-Bracket:...
, 20042004 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament-Regular Season/Seedings:*Baylor removed itself from postseason play, including the conference tournament, before the 2003–04 season . Because of this, Texas Tech got a bye in the first round of the tournament....
& 20062006 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament-Regular Season/Seeding:-Bracket:...
. - The PBR hosted a Built Ford Tough SeriesBuilt Ford Tough SeriesThe Built Ford Tough Series is the "major league" tour of the PBR competitions. It is a 30-city event series culminating in the PBR World Finals every year in Las Vegas, Nevada. The top 45 riders of the PBR compete in the BFTS with the rankings determined by points and money won...
bull ridingBull ridingBull riding refers to rodeo sports that involve a rider getting on a large bull and attempting to stay mounted while the animal attempts to buck off the rider....
event at the AAC, annually, between 2005 & 2009. - The American Airlines Center, as well as the American Airlines Arena in MiamiMiami, FloridaMiami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
, FloridaFloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, hosted the 2006 NBA Finals2006 NBA FinalsThe 2006 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2005–06 National Basketball Association season. The Miami Heat won the championship in six games over the Dallas Mavericks, winning the final game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, and becoming the third team to win a championship...
, in which the Dallas MavericksDallas MavericksThe Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
were defeated in six games by the Miami HeatMiami HeatThe Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...
. This was both teams' first appearance in the Finals. Because American Airlines held the rights to both venues in the final, the series was nicknamed by some as the "American Airlines series". - Hosted the 55th National Hockey League All-Star Game55th National Hockey League All-Star GameThe 55th National Hockey League All-Star Game was held in Dallas, Texas, on January 24, 2007. The Western Conference was victorious, defeating the Eastern Conference 12–9...
on January 24, 2007. - Co-hosted the 2011 NBA Finals2011 NBA FinalsThe 2011 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2010–11 season of the National Basketball Association and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, 4–2, to win their first NBA title...
(Games 3, 4, and 5) with the American Airlines Arena in Miami (the same venues as the 2006 Finals), a rematch of the 2006 championship series against the Miami Heat. It was both teams' second appearance in the Finals, and this time the Mavericks won in 6 games.
Wrestling
- Regular host for WWE live events in the DFW area. Previous events have included Survivor Series 2003Survivor Series (2003)Survivor Series was the seventeenth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
, Night of Champions 2008Night of Champions (2008)Night of Champions was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on June 29, 2008 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was the first annual event to be promoted solely under the Night of Champions name and the eighth...
, Hell in a Cell 2010Hell in a Cell (2010)Hell in a Cell was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment that took place on October 3, 2010 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was the second annual Hell in a Cell event. Like the 2009 event, the event featured the Hell in a Cell...
, a taping of Saturday Night's Main Event, and various episodes of RawWWE RAWWWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
, SmackDown, ECW, and the season one finale of NXTWWE NXTWWE NXT is a sports entertainment television program produced by WWE that debuted on February 23, 2010. Described as a hybrid between reality television and WWE's scripted live event shows, the premise of the show follows select talent contracted to WWE's developmental territory Florida...
. - UFC 103UFC 103UFC 103: Franklin vs. Belfort was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on September 19, 2009 in Dallas at the American Airlines Center. The event was broadcasted on pay-per-view.-Background :...
was held at the Center on September 19, 2009.
Concerts
- The Dixie ChicksDixie ChicksThe Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
performed during their Top of the World TourTop of the World TourTop of the World Tour was the 2003 concert tour by American country music trio Dixie Chicks. It was in support of their album Home, and named after the song "Top of the World" on that album.-History:...
on July 6, 2003, with Michelle BranchMichelle BranchMichelle Jacquet DeSevren Branch is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and actress. During the early 2000s, she released two top-selling albums, The Spirit Room and Hotel Paper, and was subsequently nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2003...
as their opening act. It was at this show that lead vocalist Natalie MainesNatalie MainesNatalie Louise Maines Pasdar is an American singer-songwriter who achieved success as the lead vocalist for the female alternative country band, the Dixie Chicks...
received a death threat, saying she'd "be shot dead" at this concert, due to her controversial comment toward President George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
(himself a Texas resident, which was actually the basis for the comment). - The American Airlines Center is a usual stop for many world tours including those of Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, The Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna and many more.
Other Info
- Built on and in the shadows of the former Dallas neighborhood of Little MexicoLittle MexicoLittle Mexico is a former neighborhood in Dallas, Texas, encompassing the area bordered by Maple Avenue, McKinney Avenue and the MKT Railroad. Formerly a Polish Jewish neighborhood, it grew into Little Mexico starting from the 1910s until the 1980s...
, the beginnings of the Mexican American population in the Dallas area. - A few weeks after the first event, it was found that the glass installed in the bathrooms was not the same as what was originally intended. Many who drove by the arena complained they had a clear view into the restrooms. The glass was quickly changed to the correct type the next week.
- The AAC was pictured in Season 20, Episode 8 of the Simpsons, as "Dallas Arena," with the city skyline behind it, and a board in front saying that the Mavericks were playing the "Springfield Celtics," earlier referred to as the "Austin Celtics," using the logo of the Boston Celtics.
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