Bankers Life Fieldhouse
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 The entrance to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, October 2012 | |
  Bankers Life Fieldhouse Location in Indianapolis Show map of Indianapolis  Bankers Life Fieldhouse Location in Indiana Show map of Indiana  Bankers Life Fieldhouse Location in the United States Show map of the United States | |
| Former names | Conseco Fieldhouse (1999–2011) |
|---|---|
| Address | 125 South Pennsylvania Street |
| Location | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| Coordinates | 39°45′50″N 86°9′20″W / 39.76389°N 86.15556°W / 39.76389; -86.15556Coordinates: 39°45′50″N 86°9′20″W / 39.76389°N 86.15556°W / 39.76389; -86.15556 |
| Owner | Capital Improvement Board, City of Indianapolis |
| Operator | Capital Improvement Board of Managers of Marion County, Indiana |
| Capacity | Basketball: 17,923 Concerts: 19,000 Ice hockey: 12,300 |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | July 22, 1997 |
| Opened | November 6, 1999 |
| Construction cost | $183 million ($275 million in 2018 dollars[1]) |
| Architect | Ellerbe Becket Blackburn Architects[2] |
| Project manager | John Klipsch Consulting, LLC[3] |
| Structural engineer | Fink Roberts & Petrie Inc.[4] |
| Services engineer | Moore Engineers, P.C.[5] |
| General contractor | Hunt/Smoot[6] |
| Tenants | |
Indiana Pacers (NBA) (1999–present) Indiana Fever (WNBA) (2000–present) | |
Bankers Life Fieldhouse is an indoor arena located in Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It opened in November 1999 to replace Market Square Arena. The arena is the home of the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association and the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association. The Fieldhouse also hosts college basketball games (including the annual Big Ten Conference tournaments), indoor concerts, and ice hockey.
It was originally named Conseco Fieldhouse, as the naming rights to the venue were sold to Conseco, a financial services organization based in nearby Carmel. In May 2010, the company renamed itself as CNO Financial Group, but the Conseco name was retained by the Fieldhouse. In December 2011, CNO Financial Group changed the name of the Fieldhouse to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, after one of its subsidiaries, Bankers Life and Casualty.[7] The fieldhouse announced on March 13, 2018, that CNO had decided not to renew its naming sponsorship, which will expire on June 30, 2019.[8]
Unlike most other North American sports arenas, the Fieldhouse was designed primarily for basketball. The arena can accommodate an NHL-sized rink, but the seating capacity is reduced to 12,300 for ice hockey, as the seating arrangement is asymmetrical.
Contents
1 Events
2 High school sports
3 Wrestling
4 Auto racing
5 Awards and recognitions
6 Scoreboard
7 Seating capacity
8 Gallery
9 References
10 External links
Events
The first NBA game held at Bankers Life Fieldhouse was on November 6, 1999 when the Indiana Pacers played their regular-season home opener against the Boston Celtics. Later that same season, the Pacers made it to the 2000 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. Games 3, 4, and 5 of that championship series were held at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, but the Pacers ended up losing that season's title 4 games to 2.[citation needed]
Some of the games of 2002 FIBA World Championship were played at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, including semifinals and the final.[citation needed]
In 2009, Bankers Life Fieldhouse was the site for the 2009 WNBA Finals. The Indiana Fever took on the Phoenix Mercury for games three and four of that series, but ended up losing the series. Three years later, the Fever hosted the 2012 WNBA Finals for games 3 & 4 and beat the Minnesota Lynx.[citation needed]
Bankers Life Fieldhouse is a host venue for many different events besides home games for the Pacers and Fever. From 2002 to 2007, the venue served as the site of the Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament in even numbered years while the tournament was held at the United Center in Chicago in odd numbered years. In 2008, the tournament was moved to Bankers Life Fieldhouse exclusively for five years, through 2012. The arena is also a frequent site of the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament. 2012 will mark the 12th time in 13 years that the tournament has been held at the Fieldhouse. On June 5, 2011, the Big Ten Conference announced that beginning in 2013 the location of both of the conference basketball tournaments for the following four years would be alternated between the Chicago area and Indianapolis. Bankers Life Fieldhouse would again be the site for both men's and women's events in 2014 and 2016.[9] The 2011 NCAA Women's Final Four was also held at the Fieldhouse on April 3 and April 5 of 2011. For basketball, the venue seats 17,923 (18,345 from 1999 to 2006, 18,165 from 2006-2016).
Additionally, the Indiana Firebirds of the Arena Football League played at the Fieldhouse from 2001 to 2004. The venue also hosted select games for the Indiana Ice of the United States Hockey League.
The Professional Bull Riders brought its Built Ford Tough Series bull riding tour to the Fieldhouse for the first time in January 2011.[10] It was their second visit to Indianapolis; they first visited Indianapolis during the 2004 season when they held a BFTS event at the RCA Dome.
High school sports
In addition to professional events, the arena also hosts the IHSAA state finals in wrestling as well as both girls and boys basketball. It also occasionally hosts other high school tournaments as well.
Wrestling
WWE has hosted many shows such as Raw and SmackDown.
WCW has hosted the PPV event Sin (2001).[11]
It also hosted many PPV events such as The Great American Bash (2006),[12]SummerSlam (2008),[13]Survivor Series (2012),[14] and Clash of Champions (2016).[15]
The Fieldhouse is notable for being the location of many landmark moments for the professional wrestling group The Shield, who debuted on November 18, 2012 at Survivor Series,[16] broke up on the June 2nd, 2014 episode of WWE Raw[17] and reunited on the October 9th, 2017 episode of WWE Raw.[18]
Auto racing
In 2015, the Fieldhouse hosted the Indy Invitational, with midget car racing and outlaw kart racing held on a dirt track erected on the arena floor.[19]
Awards and recognitions
In 2005 and 2006, Bankers Life Fieldhouse was ranked the No. 1 venue in the NBA according to the Sports Business Journal/Sports Business Daily Reader Survey. In 2006 The Ultimate Sports Road Trip reaffirmed Bankers Life Fieldhouse as the best venue in all 4 of the major sports leagues. "The Ultimate Sports Road Trip has recently concluded a re-scoring and re-evaluation of all 122 franchises in the four major sports, based on our personal visits to each of the teams in a journey that began in 1998. Based on our criteria, Bankers Life Fieldhouse has again withstood scrutiny to be named the "best of the best" in the four major sports. Everything about Bankers Life Fieldhouse is top notch, a sparkling venue in a sparkling city," said Farrell and Kulyk.
In October 2004, the Fieldhouse hosted the 2004 FINA Short Course World Swimming Championships. A 25 meter 300,000 gallon competition pool and 174,000 gallon warm-up pool were temporarily installed. A total of 71,659 tickets were sold for the four-day event. The crowd on the evening of Saturday, October 11, 2004 set a record for the largest attendance at a U.S. Swimming event outside of the Olympics with 11,488 people.[citation needed]
Scoreboard
In 2012, a giant state-of-the-art scoreboard was added to Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The scoreboard features twin 1080p high definition (HD) video screens, each measuring 50 feet long – extending nearly foul line to foul line – by 21 feet high. In addition to the HD screens running the length of the court, the innovative rectangular scoreboard design is capped by a 25’ by 14’ full 1080p HD video screen facing each baseline. The result of the design is a greatly improved visual experience from nearly every seat in the building. Additionally, a new sound system was installed.[20]
Seating capacity
| Years | Capacity |
|---|---|
| 1999–2006 | 18,345 |
| 2006–2016 | 18,165 |
| 2016-present | 17,923 |
Gallery
A Pacers' preseason game, showing the original scoreboard, during the Conseco Fieldhouse era
Satellite view of Bankers Life Fieldhouse, showing the former Conseco Fieldhouse name
Lobby during the Conseco Fieldhouse era
Balcony view of the 2013 Crossroads Classic
References
^ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved January 2, 2019..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "Conseco Fieldhouse". Blackburn Architects. Archived from the original on 2013-06-27. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
^ "Conseco Fieldhouse". John Klipsch Consulting, LLC. Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
^ "Conseco Fieldhouse" (PDF). Fink Roberts and Petrie, Inc. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-02. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
^ Nieto, Mike (December 19, 2011). "Where Are They Now?: John Wilczynski". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Munster. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
^ "Bankers Life Fieldhouse". Ballparks.com. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
^ Ritchie, Carrie (December 22, 2011). "Bankers Life Knocks Conseco Off Fieldhouse Title". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved January 27, 2013.
^ "Fieldhouse to lose Bankers Life moniker after insurer declines to renew naming deal". Indianapolis Business Journal. March 13, 2018. Retrieved March 13, 2018.
^ "Big Ten Announces Future Sites for Football Championship Games and Basketball Tournaments - BIG TEN CONFERENCE Official Athletic Site". Bigten.org. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
^ "Indianapolis hosts BPR Jack Daniels Invitational". The Professional Bull Riders. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
^ "WCW Sin PPV Results History". TWNPnews.com. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ "WWE Great American Bash 2006 Results". Pro Wrestling History. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ Martin, Adam (August 20, 2008). "Recent attendance figures for WWE & TNA from August 14 to 17". WrestleView. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ "WWE Survivor Series presented by Kmart". Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Archived from the original on 2012-08-27. Retrieved 2012-09-01.
^ "WWE Clash of Champions - Bankers Life Fieldhouse". Retrieved 17 July 2016.
^ "WWE Champion CM Punk def. John Cena and Ryback (Triple Threat Match)". WWE. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ Caldwell, James. "Caldwell's WWE Raw Results 6/2: Complete "virtual-time" coverage of live Raw – PPV fall-out, huge angle at the end of Raw, post-Raw coverage, MITB hype, more". PWTorch.com. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ Keller, Wade. "KELLER'S WWE RAW REPORT 10/9: Shield reunion continues, Miz TV with Sheamus & Cesaro, TLC build up continues". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
^ Adams, Jeff (October 8, 2015). "Midgets, Outlaws will race indoors". Peoria Journal-Star. Peoria, IL. Retrieved 2015-10-08.
^ "Best Arena Scoreboard Coming to Bankers Life Fieldhouse".
External links
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bankers Life Fieldhouse. |
- Official website
- The Ultimate Sports Road Trip profile
- Bankers Life Fieldhouse Seating Charts
- Interview with Bankers Life Fieldhouse Executive Chef Chris Albano
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Market Square Arena | Home of the Indiana Pacers 1999–present | Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by first arena | Home of the Indiana Fever 2000–present | Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by Olympic Indoor Hall Athens | FIBA World Cup Final Venue 2002 | Succeeded by Saitama Super Arena Saitama |
| Preceded by Alamodome San Antonio, Texas | NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament Final Four 2011 | Succeeded by Pepsi Center Denver, Colorado |
