NHL As home of the
Tampa Bay Lightning, Benchmark International Arena has hosted games in the
Stanley Cup Final, hosting games one, two, five, and seven of the
2004 Stanley Cup Final, where the Lightning defeated the
Calgary Flames four games to three to win their first Stanley Cup. During the
2015 Stanley Cup Final against the
Chicago Blackhawks, the arena was the site of games one, two, and five. Amalie Arena was also the site of games one, two, and five of the
2021 Stanley Cup Final, where the Lightning defeated the
Montreal Canadiens four games to one to win their third Stanley Cup. In the 2004 and 2021 Finals, the Lightning clinched the Stanley Cup on home ice at Benchmark International Arena. Games three, four and six of the
2022 Stanley Cup Final were also held at Benchmark International Arena; the
Colorado Avalanche became the first visiting team to hoist the Stanley Cup at the arena after defeating the Lightning four games to two. It did not host the
2020 Stanley Cup Final as all games were held
behind closed doors at
Edmonton's
Rogers Place due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. However, the eventual champion Lightning (who defeated the
Dallas Stars in six games) did hold watch parties outside the arena for select season ticket holders. In addition, Benchmark International Arena has hosted the
National Hockey League All-Star Game twice, in 1999 and in 2018.
College basketball In college basketball, the arena is a regular host for games in both the
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament and
NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. The arena has hosted first and second-round games for the men's tournament in
2003,
2008,
2011, and
2026 (it was scheduled to host games again in
2020, only to have the tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). In the women's tournament, Amalie Arena has hosted the Final Four of the
2008,
2015,
2019, and
2025 tournaments. The arena has also hosted conference tournaments, hosting the
2007 ACC men's basketball tournament and the
2009 and
2022 SEC Men's Basketball Tournaments. The arena was also the main home of the
South Florida Bulls men's basketball team for their 2011–12 season while the
USF Sun Dome underwent extensive renovations.
AFL During the arena's time as home of the
Tampa Bay Storm of the
Arena Football League, it hosted the league's championship game, known as the
ArenaBowl, on two occasions,
ArenaBowl XII in 1998 and
ArenaBowl XVII in 2003.
Volleyball Amalie Arena hosted the
NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament Final Four in the 2009 and 2023 tournaments.
NBA The arena was slated to host an NBA preseason game in 2010 between the
Orlando Magic and
Miami Heat, the league's two Florida teams. However, months before the game, the arena's basketball floor was treated with an oil-based cleaning solution that resulted in a slippery film forming on it. According to Magic players, the floor was so slippery that they had to walk through their
shootaround. When it became apparent that there was no way to make the court playable, the game was canceled half an hour before the scheduled tipoff. All fans received a full refund. For the
2020–21 NBA season, the
Toronto Raptors played their home games in Amalie Arena due to travel restrictions imposed by the Canadian government in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.
College hockey The
Frozen Four of the
2012 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was held in the arena, hosted by the
University of Alabama in Huntsville, the nearest collegiate hockey team to Florida. This was the first time the Frozen Four was held outside the northern US since 1999, when the
University of Alaska Anchorage hosted the event at the
Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim in
Anaheim, California.
Boston College won the national championship game 4–1 against
Ferris State. The arena again hosted the Frozen Four in
2016 and
2023.
Combat sports The arena held its first
UFC event on April 16, 2016, for
UFC on Fox: Teixeira vs. Evans. On July 20, 2024, the arena hosted the
Jake Paul vs. Mike Perry boxing event on pay-per-view. Paul won via knockout in round 6. It has also held the
World Wrestling Federation (now renamed to WWE) pay-per-view event
Survivor Series (2000), as well as
Extreme Rules (2011),
Battleground (2014), and will host
Backlash (2026). Tampa hosted
WrestleMania 37 in 2021 but the arena was not involved in the festivities surrounding the event, as all weekly WWE events took place in a
bio-secure bubble with zero ticketed fans in attendance called the
WWE ThunderDome at the time due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. WrestleMania 37 itself was held at
Raymond James Stadium in front of a reduced capacity audience over the course of two nights.
Other events British
alternative rock band
Coldplay performed a concert at the venue on June 28, 2012, as part of their
Mylo Xyloto Tour.
Marvel Universe Live! kicked off its national tour from the venue on July 10, 2014. The arena hosted AMSOIL Arenacross from 2015 to 2017. The arena hosted the Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions in 2016. ==Gallery==