Lost NBA & NHL Arenas
Most of the arenas that hosted professional basketball and hockey in the twentieth century have been replaced by larger buildings with more premium seating and modern amenities.
Some, like the Forum in Inglewood, still stand and host concerts. Others were demolished, and their sites became parking lots, offices or new development.
46 venues
Edgerton Park Arena
Edgerton Park Arena in Rochester, a former drill hall, was home to the Rochester Royals from 1945 to 1955, including their 1951 NBA championship season. It was demolished after 1957.
Denver Auditorium Arena
The Denver Auditorium Arena hosted the 1908 Democratic National Convention and was home of Denver's NBA and ABA basketball teams. The arena portion was demolished in 1990.
Boston Arena (Matthews Arena)
Boston Arena, renamed Matthews Arena in 1982, opened in 1910 and was the first home of the Boston Bruins and an early home of the Celtics. Northeastern University closed it in December 2025 and began taking it down in 2026.
Madison Square Garden (1925)
The third Madison Square Garden stood on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets from 1925 to 1968, home to the Rangers, Knicks and the city's biggest fights. It was razed after the Garden moved to Penn Station; Worldwide Plaza now occupies the site.
Olympia Stadium
Olympia Stadium at Grand River and McGraw was the Red Wings' home from 1927 through 1979 and briefly the Pistons'. It was demolished in 1986 and replaced on site by a National Guard armory.
Minneapolis Auditorium
The Minneapolis Auditorium was the main home of the Minneapolis Lakers dynasty from 1947 to 1959. It was demolished in 1989 for the Minneapolis Convention Center.
Boston Garden
Boston Garden was the arena built over North Station that housed the Bruins from 1928 and the Celtics from 1946 until both moved next door in 1995. It was demolished in 1998.
Chicago Stadium
Chicago Stadium on West Madison Street hosted the Blackhawks from 1929 and the Bulls from 1967 until the United Center opened across the street in 1994. It was razed in 1995 for parking.
St. Louis Arena
The St. Louis Arena opened in 1929 near Forest Park and was the Blues' home from 1967 to 1994. It was demolished in February 1999 and the site redeveloped as The Highlands.
New Orleans Municipal Auditorium
New Orleans Municipal Auditorium, opened in 1930 next to Congo Square, hosted the ABA Buccaneers, the NBA's New Orleans Jazz and ECHL hockey. It has stood abandoned since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Philadelphia Convention Hall and Civic Center
Philadelphia's Convention Hall hosted national political conventions and was home to the NBA Warriors and early 76ers. It closed in 1996 and was demolished in 2005 for a Penn medical center.
Kiel Auditorium
Kiel Auditorium was St. Louis's municipal arena from 1934 to 1991 and home to the NBA's St. Louis Hawks from 1955 to 1968. Its arena half was razed in 1992 for what is now Enterprise Center.
International Amphitheatre
The International Amphitheatre at the Union Stock Yards hosted livestock shows, national political conventions and Chicago's early NBA teams, including the Bulls' first season. It was demolished in 1999.
Cleveland Arena
Cleveland Arena on Euclid Avenue was the city's main indoor venue from 1937 to 1974, home to the AHL Barons and the Cavaliers' first four seasons. It was demolished in 1977.
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, 'the Aud', stood on the waterfront from 1940 to 2009 and was home to the NHL's Sabres and the NBA's Braves. Its site is now part of the Canalside district.
Uline Arena
Uline Arena, later the Washington Coliseum, was home to the BAA/NBA Washington Capitols and the site of the Beatles' first U.S. concert. The building survives as an REI store.
Cincinnati Gardens
Cincinnati Gardens opened in 1949 and was home to the NBA's Cincinnati Royals from 1957 to 1972 and later to Xavier basketball. It closed in 2016 and was demolished in 2018.
Omaha Civic Auditorium
The Omaha Civic Auditorium was Omaha's main arena from 1955 to 2014, a part-time home of the NBA's Kansas City-Omaha Kings and home of Creighton basketball. It was demolished in 2016.
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena opened in Exposition Park in 1959 and housed the Lakers, Clippers, early Kings and USC basketball. It closed in 2016 and was razed for LAFC's soccer stadium.
Cobo Arena
Cobo Arena was the 12,000-seat arena attached to Detroit's Cobo convention center and home of the Detroit Pistons from 1961 to 1978. It closed in 2010 and its space became a ballroom.
Civic Arena
Pittsburgh's Civic Arena, the domed 'Igloo' with a retractable roof, opened in 1961 and housed the Penguins from 1967 to 2010. It was demolished in 2011-2012.
Mid-South Coliseum
The Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis was home to the city's ABA franchise and Memphis State basketball. It closed in 2006 and still stands, vacant.
Bayfront Center
The Bayfront Center on St. Petersburg's waterfront hosted ABA, minor-league hockey and indoor soccer from 1965. It was demolished on December 1, 2004.
The Spectrum
The Spectrum in South Philadelphia was home to the Flyers and 76ers from 1967 to 1996 and stayed open for minor-league and concert use until October 2009. It was demolished in 2010-2011.
The Forum
The Forum in Inglewood was home to the Lakers and Kings from 1967 to 1999. The building still stands and operates as the Kia Forum, a concert and events arena.
Met Center
The Met Center in Bloomington was the Minnesota North Stars' home from 1967 until the team moved to Dallas in 1993. It was imploded in December 1994; an IKEA now occupies part of the site.
HemisFair Arena
HemisFair Arena opened with San Antonio's 1968 world's fair and was home to the Spurs from 1973 to 1993. It was demolished in 1995 to expand the convention center.
Salt Palace
The Salt Palace was Salt Lake City's arena from 1969, home to the ABA champion Utah Stars and then the Utah Jazz until 1991. It was demolished in 1994 for the convention center.
Omni Coliseum
The Omni Coliseum in downtown Atlanta hosted the Hawks from 1972 to 1997 and the NHL Flames until 1980. It was demolished in July 1997 and State Farm Arena was built on the same site.
Capital Centre
The Capital Centre in suburban Landover was home to the Bullets and Capitals from the 1973-74 season until both moved to downtown Washington's MCI Center in 1997. It was imploded in December 2002.
Richfield Coliseum
The Richfield Coliseum was a suburban arena between Cleveland and Akron that housed the Cavaliers from 1974 to 1994. After demolition in 1999 its land became grassland in Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
Market Square Arena
Market Square Arena was the Indiana Pacers' downtown home from 1974 to 1999, spanning Market Street next to City Market. It was imploded in 2001 and the site now holds an apartment tower and a Cummins facility.
Pontiac Silverdome
The Pontiac Silverdome was an air-supported domed stadium north of Detroit. It housed the Lions for 27 seasons and the Pistons for a decade, and hosted Super Bowl XVI, WrestleMania III and the first indoor World Cup match.
McNichols Sports Arena
McNichols Sports Arena was Denver's major-league arena from 1975 to 1999, home to the Nuggets, the NHL's Colorado Rockies and the early Colorado Avalanche. It was demolished in 2000.
The Summit
The Summit, later Compaq Center, was the Houston Rockets' arena from 1975 to 2003. The building was converted into Lakewood Church's main campus in 2005.
Kingdome
Seattle's Kingdome housed the Seahawks, Mariners, SuperSonics and Sounders from 1976 until early 2000 and was imploded to clear the site for Lumen Field.
Joe Louis Arena
Joe Louis Arena on the Detroit riverfront was the Red Wings' home from December 1979 to 2017. The city dismantled it in 2019-2020, and the site is being redeveloped as Water Square.
Reunion Arena
Reunion Arena was Dallas's main indoor arena from 1980 to 2008, home to the NBA's Mavericks and, from 1993, the NHL's Stars. It was demolished in 2009.
Meadowlands Arena
The Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford was home to the NBA's Nets and the NHL's Devils for about three decades. It closed to public events in 2015 and has since been used as a rehearsal hall and film stage.
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
Minneapolis's air-supported dome housed the Vikings, Twins and Gophers from 1982, hosted two World Series champions and a Super Bowl, and was demolished in 2014 for U.S. Bank Stadium.
Charlotte Coliseum
The Charlotte Coliseum, a 23,000-seat arena, was home to the original Charlotte Hornets from 1988 to 2002 and briefly the Bobcats. It closed in 2005 and was imploded in 2007.
Miami Arena
Miami Arena in Overtown was the first home of the Miami Heat (1988-1999) and the Florida Panthers (1993-1998). Outmoded within a decade, it was demolished in 2008.
ARCO Arena
ARCO Arena, later Sleep Train Arena, was the Sacramento Kings' home from 1988 to 2016. It was demolished in 2022 for a planned medical campus.
Bradley Center
The Bradley Center was home of the Milwaukee Bucks from 1988 to 2018. It was demolished in 2019 after the team moved next door to Fiserv Forum.
Amway Arena
Amway Arena, originally Orlando Arena, was home of the Orlando Magic from 1989 to 2010. It was imploded on March 25, 2012.
Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome was a cable-supported domed stadium in downtown Atlanta. From 1992 to 2017 it was home to the Falcons and hosted two Super Bowls, Olympic events and three men's Final Fours.