United Center
United Center is an indoor arena on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is named after its corporate sponsor United Airlines, which has been based in Chicago since 2007 and has a hub at O'Hare International Airport. With a capacity of nearly 21,000, the United Center is the largest arena by capacity in the NBA, and second largest arena by capacity in the NHL. It also has a seating capacity of 23,500 for concerts.
For the Ukrainian political party formerly known as "United Centre", see Andriy Baloha's Team.Address
1901 West Madison Street
United Center Joint Venture (UCJV)
(Chicago Bulls 50%/Chicago Blackhawks 50%)[1]
United Center Joint Venture
Concerts: 23,500
Basketball: 20,917
(standing room to at least 23,129[2]
Hockey: 19,717
(standing room to at least 22,428)[3]
960,000 sq ft (89,000 m2)
April 6, 1992[5]
1992–1994
August 18, 1994
2009–10 (300 Level)
2014 (exterior)
2016–17 (atrium)
Populous (then HOK Sport)
W. E. Simpson Company, Inc.
Marmon Mok
International Facilities Group, LLC[7]
Opening in 1994, the United Center replaced the Chicago Stadium, which was located across the street. The first event held at the arena was WWF SummerSlam. Due to the lockout, the Blackhawks did not move in until January 1995. In 1996, the United Center hosted the Democratic National Convention.[10]
The arena is home to a statue of Michael Jordan erected in 1994. Originally located outside the arena, it now stands inside an atrium which was added in 2017.[11] The Jordan statue has since been joined by statues of Blackhawks ice hockey players Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, while a statue of various Blackhawks players is located across the street on the site of Chicago Stadium.
On March 25, 2021, the United Center became Chicago's logistical hub to support the city's efforts against COVID-19.[12]
Renovations[edit]
Late 2000s club additions and 300 level renovation[edit]
In 2008, the United Center saw the debut of the Harris Club, private premium seating area that filled space previous occupied by several club-level suites. The Harris Club was an open lounge premium seating area with a capacity of 236 ticketholders fitted with amenities such including a Wii, a pool table, three bars, a buffet, and multiple televisions.[43][44] Another change was the addition of two bars on the 300 level with open views to the arena bowl.[44]
In time for the 2009–10 season of its sports tenants, the United Center's 300 level saw its concourse renovated with the addition of 144 flat screen televisions, new food and beverage stations above select seating sections and two new bars that open up to panoramic views of the arena. During the 2010 off-season, two additional bars with panoramic views of the arena were added along with the other two that had been added the previous year. Another notable addition were illuminated signs on each side of the arena's 300 level seating bowl reading "Welcome to the Madhouse".[45][46][47] The United Center also renovated several of its club-level suites into 32 "theater boxes", which were opera-style boxes seating four-people seating areas with access to an upscale restaurant-style lounge area shared with the other theater boxes. The theater boxes were built on the opposite end of the seating bowl as the Harris Club.[43][48]
2010s changes[edit]
After the 2012–13 season, a third panoramic LED bar was installed around the 300 level, which required the removal of the "Welcome to the Madhouse" signs.[46]
A new court floor design was added for the Bulls' 2015–16 season and includes multiple changes. The iconic bull head logo at center court has increased in size by 75% and the image of a basketball that was previously behind the logo has been removed. The "CHICAGO BULLS" text on the endlines has been changed to the font used in the official Bulls logo to make the court design more consistent with the Bulls brand, and the same font has been applied to the "Bulls.com" and the "@ChicagoBulls" text on the north apron of the court. The lines on the court have been changed from red and white to all black to emphasize the bold colors of the Bulls brand. The four stars from the City of Chicago flag have been added to the south apron of the court to highlight the team's civic pride and incorporate the "Chicago Basketball" branding campaign.[49]
Statues[edit]
Several statues of Bulls and Blackhawks greats exist inside and around the outside of the arena.
The most well known of these is the statue of Michael Jordan, also known as "The Spirit", on the east side of the arena in an atrium (opened in 2017) outside Gate Four. Originally installed in 1994, during Jordan's first retirement and just after the arena's opening, the statue features Jordan mid-dunk over an opposing player, with his tenures with the Bulls and career stats engraved on the bottom. The statue was initially located directly in front of the arena.
In 2000, in honor of the team's 75th anniversary, a statue of various Blackhawks greats from different eras, along with the franchise's Indian head logo, was erected on the north side of the stadium across Madison Street, near the former Chicago Stadium site. The back of the statue features the names of all Blackhawks players up to that point, along with a marble plaque commemorating Chicago Stadium. In October 2020, the statue was vandalized in protest of the team's use of Native American iconography as a logo and was temporarily removed for repairs.
Blackhawks legends Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita received bronze statues in their honor outside of the United Center during the 2011–12 NHL season.[54]
In 2011, a bronze bust of Bulls great Scottie Pippen was dedicated in the stadium's first floor concourse.