Despite being one of the premier NBA facilities when completed in 1988, the
BMO Harris Bradley Center was one of the oldest active NBA arenas by the end of the Bucks' tenancy in 2018. Only
Madison Square Garden in
New York City and
Oakland Arena in
Oakland were older than the Bradley Center; however, both Madison Square Garden and Oakland Arena were substantially renovated during their lifetimes, with Oakland Arena eventually being replaced by the new
Chase Center in
San Francisco, beginning with the
2019–20 season. The funds for the building of the BMO Harris Bradley Center were donated by
Jane Bradley Pettit and husband
Lloyd Pettit without any provision for the building's long-term capital needs or annual operating expenses. Although the facility was self-sufficient, its tenants, such as the Bucks, were at a disadvantage compared with other NBA teams because of the arrangement. Former Bucks owner and former U.S. Senator
Herb Kohl proposed building a new downtown arena to replace the Bradley Center. There was considerable discussion in the region about the idea of a publicly funded arena and ultimately no resolution was reached. In 2009, Wisconsin Governor
Jim Doyle included a provision in the state's capital budget seeking $5 million in state bonding support to renovate the Bradley Center. The Bradley Center's board of directors told state officials that the building needed $40 million in renovations, so they reportedly agreed to raise the remaining $35 million on their own. On September 18, 2013, then-deputy NBA commissioner
Adam Silver toured the arena and said it was a few thousand square feet short of NBA standards, and also lacked numerous amenities. On April 16, 2014, Kohl announced an agreement to sell the franchise to New York City hedge-fund investors
Marc Lasry and
Wesley Edens. The deal included provisions for $100 million each from Kohl and the new ownership group, for a total of $200 million, toward the construction of a new downtown arena. The NBA then informed the Bucks that the franchise wouldn't be allowed to renew their lease on the Bradley Center, which would expire after the 2017–18 season, and that the team needed to have either a new arena completed or under construction by the beginning of 2018, or the franchise would be bought from Lasry and Edens, then sold to another ownership group, either in Las Vegas or Seattle, which would mean the certain departure of the Bucks from Milwaukee. On July 15, 2015, the
Wisconsin Senate approved funding for the new arena by a 21–10 margin, and on July 28, 2015, the
Wisconsin State Assembly approved funding by a 52–34 margin. On August 12, 2015, Governor
Scott Walker signed the arena spending plan at
Wisconsin State Fair Park in
West Allis,
Wisconsin. The
Milwaukee city council voted 12–3 on September 22, 2015, to approve the plan. The city's Plan Commission gave unanimous conditional approval to the Bucks' general development plans for land in the
Park East Corridor on November 23, while acknowledging possible parking problems in the area. On April 13, 2016, the Bucks signed a 30-year lease to play in the new arena. In addition, Marquette University has agreed to lease the arena for its home games, beginning in 2018. Unlike Marquette's previous agreement with the Bradley Center, the lease agreement with Fiserv Forum ends in the spring of 2025, allowing Marquette the option to decide to pursue the building of its own smaller arena for lesser-attended match-ups, and to only utilize the Fiserv Forum for larger
Big East Conference and
Badgers-Golden Eagles rivalry games. The official groundbreaking was during the 2nd annual Bucks Block Party on June 18, 2016. On May 2, 2017, Bucks president Peter Feigin stated that construction of the arena remained on schedule and on budget. Feigin's announcement was from the site of the new arena, after the first roof truss was installed and bolted into place. The roof was officially topped off on August 24, 2017. On August 26, 2018, Fiserv Forum was officially opened in a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the 4th annual Bucks Block Party. The first live event at Fiserv Forum was
The Killers with
Violent Femmes on September 4, 2018. The Bucks played their inaugural game at the Fiserv Forum during the preseason against the
Chicago Bulls on October 3, 2018, a 116–82 Bucks victory. The Forum's regular-season home opener was played on October 19, 2018, against the
Indiana Pacers. The Bucks won, 118–101. The Bucks' first season in the Forum was a great success, with the Bucks finishing the regular season with their first 60-win season since 1980–81. They also went 33–8 at the Forum, the second-best home record in the NBA. On April 14, 2019, the Forum hosted its first NBA playoff game, Game 1 of the first round between the Bucks and the Detroit Pistons. The Bucks won, 121–86. On December 22, 2019, the Bucks had their 50th consecutive sellout at the Forum, the longest such streak in franchise history, which started on November 16, 2018. On March 11, 2019, it was announced that the Fiserv Forum would host the
2020 Democratic National Convention from July 13 to 16, 2020. It was later postponed to August 17–20, 2020, due to the
ongoing coronavirus pandemic in the United States. On June 24, 2020, it was announced that the convention would be downsized and instead held at the nearby
Wisconsin Center. On February 22, 2020, the Bucks set a new attendance record for the Forum, when 18,290 attended to watch the Bucks play the
Philadelphia 76ers. The Bucks won 119–98. This record was broken less than a week later, on February 28, 2020, as 18,412 fans watched the Bucks face off against the
Oklahoma City Thunder. The Bucks won 133–86. On July 11, 2021, Fiserv Forum hosted its first
NBA Finals game, Game 3 between the Bucks and the
Phoenix Suns. The Bucks won 120–100. On July 20, the Fiserv Forum also hosted Game 6 of the
NBA Finals, where the Bucks would clinch their first NBA championship in 50 years, beating the Suns 105–98. The Bucks have had substantial success at Fiserv Forum since it opened, compiling a regular season record of 161–45 (.782 winning percentage) at the Forum. On July 15–18, 2024, the Forum hosted the
2024 Republican National Convention. On August 20, 2024, the Forum hosted a campaign rally with the Democratic Party's nominees,
Kamala Harris and
Tim Walz, that coincided with the
2024 Democratic National Convention in
Chicago's
United Center, located approximately away.
Naming rights On July 26, 2018, the Bucks agreed to a 25-year naming rights deal with
Fiserv, a financial services technology company based in the Milwaukee suburb of
Brookfield.
Concerts and events vs.
Chicago Blackhawks NHL preseason game at Fiserv Forum
The Killers with
Violent Femmes were the first concert at Fiserv Forum on September 4, 2018. On December 28, 2021, Fiserv Forum held its first ice hockey games with the inaugural
Holiday Face–Off tournament. On October 2, 2022, Fiserv Forum held its first
National Hockey League pre-season game, the
Chicago Blackhawks played the
Minnesota Wild as part of the Blackhawks "Home Away from Home" series. The arena also continues a Milwaukee tradition for being the site of the
New Year's Eve game for the
Harlem Globetrotters, with 2020 being the only pause in decades. ==Planning and design==