Sports pregame in October 2015 after renovations with arena in hockey configuration|alt= The arena seats 12,000 for
indoor football, 12,920 for
ice hockey,
indoor soccer and
box lacrosse, 14,500 for
basketball and
tennis, 5,450 for amphitheater concerts and stage shows, 8,900–14,800 for arena concerts, 13,000 for ice shows and the
circus, and 16,100 for
boxing and
mixed martial arts. The arena opened on November 17, 1966, with the
San Diego Gulls (then a member of the
Western Hockey League) winning their season opener, 4–1, against the
Seattle Totems. On January 12, 1971, the Rockets hosted the
1971 NBA All-Star Game at the arena. At the conclusion of the
1970–71 NBA Season, the Rockets were sold and relocated to
Houston. As a result,
San Francisco Warriors owner Franklin Mieuli, who was looking for more support for his franchise, decided to make a play for the San Diego market (in addition to the
Oakland market, where
Oakland Arena had just received a renovation project). Mieuli changed his team's name to the
Golden State Warriors for the upcoming season in order to target the state of
California as a whole for a fanbase, instead of a single
metropolitan area. The Warriors planned to split the season's home games between the
San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego. The Warriors ultimately hosted just six regular season home games at the San Diego Sports Arena, one each month of the
1971–72 season (October–March). The remainder of the Warriors' home games that season were played at Oakland Arena, where the Warriors settled full-time the following season. As the Warriors returned to the Bay Area full-time after their brief experiment in San Diego, the NBA's primary competitor league, the
American Basketball Association (ABA) awarded its first—and as it turned out, only—expansion team to San Diego. Dr.
Leonard Bloom (President and CEO of the United States Capital Corporation) paid a $1 million expansion fee to the league to start the team. The
San Diego Conquistadors began play in the
1972–73 ABA season; however, they were unable to use the Sports Arena for their first two seasons of existence due to a feud between Bloom and Peter Graham, manager of the city-owned 14,400-seat Sports Arena. The Conquistadors (or "Q's" as they were commonly known locally), played at Peterson Gymnasium on the campus of
San Diego State University from 1972 until 1974 as a result of the feud. In late 1974, the Q's were finally allowed to use the Sports Arena, but their first season at the arena would turn out to be their only full season there. In 1975, the ABA, facing mounting financial difficulties, was rumored to be discussing a merger with the NBA and the San Diego franchise was not to be included. The Conquistadors, freshly renamed the Sails, would cease operations just 11 games into the 1975–76 ABA season on November 12, 1975, when the ABA announced that it was folding the San Diego Sails franchise. The Sails were scheduled to host the
Indiana Pacers on that day but the game was not played. In 1972, the
Republican Party considered the arena for its National Convention. With little warning, however, the GOP decided to hold the convention in
Miami Beach. To compensate for this blow to local prestige, then-mayor (and future California governor)
Pete Wilson gave San Diego the by-name of "America's Finest City", which is still the city's official moniker. The arena was the host of the 1973
Muhammad Ali vs. Ken Norton boxing fight, which, by split decision, San Diego resident Norton won. The
1975 NCAA men's basketball Final Four was held at the arena from March 15, 1975, until the national championship game on March 31, where
UCLA was victorious in
John Wooden's final game. In 1978, less than three years after the Sails folded and the ABA's four surviving teams merged with the NBA, the NBA returned to San Diego with the relocation of the
Buffalo Braves, which became the
San Diego Clippers. In 1981, the Clippers were bought by
Los Angeles-based developer
Donald Sterling. Sterling, despite failing to gain approval from the NBA to relocate the team to Los Angeles in 1982 and again in 1984, did so anyway following the
1983–84 NBA season, which led to a lawsuit from the league. The team ultimately remained in Los Angeles, however, following a counter-lawsuit brought on by Sterling. The franchise has kept the Clippers name despite its reference being to the ships of
San Diego Bay. San Diego has not hosted an NBA regular game since the Clippers' departure. In both 1979 and 1981 at the San Diego Indoor Track Meet, Irish distance runner
Eamonn Coghlan broke the world record for the indoor mile with times of 3:52.6 and 3:50.6 respectively. A photo of him crossing the finish line appeared around the world including on the cover of
Sports Illustrated. Coghlan's time for the 1981 race would remain as the world record until 1983, when he improved upon his own record with a time of 3:49.78 at New Jersey's
Meadowlands Arena indoor arena. Coghlan held the indoor mile world record for 17 years and 11 months before Moroccan distance runner
Hicham El Guerrouj broke the world record in 1997 with a time of 3:48.45. The arena has also been home of the
San Diego Mariners of the
World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1977, the
San Diego Friars of
World Team Tennis (WTT) from 1975 to 1978, the
San Diego Sockers indoor soccer team, which won 10 titles in the arena, and other minor professional sports franchises. The
San Diego Sockers made their return to the arena in 2012 for their fourth season in the
PASL-Pro from
Del Mar Arena. The
San Diego Aviators of WTT relocated from New York City prior to the 2014 season and began playing their home matches in the arena. On December 29, 2014, the Aviators announced that the team would move its home matches to
Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in nearby
Carlsbad for the
2015 season. The arena has hosted a series of
UFC events. The arena hosted
UFC Live: Jones vs. Matyushenko on August 1, 2010. The arena hosted
UFC Fight Night: Mir vs. Duffee on July 15, 2015. The arena hosted
UFC on ESPN: Vera vs. Cruz on August 13, 2022. In 2015, the
Anaheim Ducks relocated their
American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate to San Diego to become the current iteration of the
San Diego Gulls, using the arena for their home games. On August 7, 2016, the arena played host to the
Arena Football League's
Los Angeles Kiss as they faced the
Cleveland Gladiators in the first round of the AFL playoffs. The game was moved to San Diego due to the Kiss' home arena, the
Honda Center in
Anaheim hosting the
Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus that weekend. The Kiss would lose to the Gladiators 56–52 in front of a crowd of 4,692. It was the first AFL game ever to be played at the arena and the first
arena football game played there since 2005, when the
AF2's
San Diego Riptide played their home games at the arena from 2002 to 2005. On August 29, 2017, the
National Lacrosse League (NLL) announced that billionaire owner
Joseph Tsai of
Alibaba had been awarded an NLL franchise to begin playing in November 2018 for the 2018–2019 season. The team is known as the
San Diego Seals. In November 2018, the
Indoor Football League (IFL) announced an expansion team for the
2019 season called the
San Diego Strike Force. The IFL became the top level of professional
indoor football in November 2019 when the
Arena Football League announced it was folding.
Concerts The Stone Poneys played there on January 13, 1968. performing at the arena in 2022
Led Zeppelin,
Jethro Tull, and Surprise Package played there on August 10, 1969.
Jimi Hendrix recorded his 13-minute jam version of "
Red House" there, on May 24, 1969. The full concert was released in 1991 as part of the
Stages box set.
Elvis Presley played there on November 15, 1970, and April 24, 1976. Attendance was 14,659 in 1970 and 17,500 in 1976. The Rolling Stones with Stevie Wonder played there on June 13, 1972.
The Grateful Dead played there a total of 4 times from 1973 to 1993. The November 14, 1973 performance has been released as part of the band's
30 Trips Around the Sun box set. Following the band's July 1, 1980 performance, drummer
Mickey Hart, rhythm guitarist
Bob Weir and their manager were arrested for interfering with a police bust.
Queen performed there four times to sold-out crowds. Their first concert was on March 12, 1976, for their
A Night at the Opera Tour which was the band's first headline tour in the US. They next performed on March 5, 1977, as part of their
A Day at the Races Tour. Their next concert was during their
News of the World Tour on December 16, 1977. The band's last performance was on July 5, 1980, while on
The Game Tour. The gatefold photograph inside
Kiss' album
Alive II was shot there during soundcheck before their show at the SDSA on August 19, 1977, during the "
Love Gun" tour.
Alice Cooper played there on many occasions and it was the venue for his concert film
The Strange Case of Alice Cooper in 1979. The
Bee Gees played to a sold-out crowd on July 5, 1979, during their
Spirits Having Flown Tour.
ABBA played there during their 1979 world tour.
Bob Marley and The Wailers performed there on November 21, 1979,
Survival Tour.
Heart performed there on August 24, 1980. The band's
Greatest Hits/Live included a medley of "
I'm Down" and "
Long Tall Sally" recorded at the show.
Duran Duran played two nights there on April 16, 1984, and April 17, 1984, as part of their Sing Blue Silver World Tour. They played there again July 28, 1987, as part of their Strange Behaviour World Tour; also that night American all-female band
The Bangles joined them on stage to sing their hit "
If She Knew What She Wants". They also played there on February 25, 2005, as part of their Astronaut World Tour when they reformed the band to its original lineup. The German heavy metal rock group
The Scorpions performed there during their 1984 World Wide live tour.
Rush performed there on May 28, 1984, as part of their
Grace Under Pressure Tour.
Van Halen played two shows on May 20 and 21 on their
1984 Tour; two shows on their 1986
5150 Tour on June 28 and 29, 1986; a show on their 1988
OU812 tour on November 19, 1988; two shows on their
For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge Tour on May 1 and 3, 1992; and finally on their 1995 The Balance "Ambulance" Tour on April 2, 1995.
Dio performed during their
Sacred Heart Tour on December 6, 1985. The show was recorded and later released as a live album, entitled
Intermission.
Bon Jovi played a sold-out show on January 16, 1987, on their
Slippery When Wet world tour.
Aerosmith performed during their
Pump Tour on March 2, 1990.
Janet Jackson has performed six concerts at this venue. She performed a sold-out show on April 23, 1990, for her
Rhythm Nation Tour. She returned to the venue on February 24, 1994, for the
Janet World Tour, another sold-out show. She performed sold-out shows for her
The Velvet Rope Tour and
All for You Tour. She came back on September 20, 2008, for her
Rock Witchu Tour. She played a date here on October 7, 2017, during her
State of the World Tour.
MC Hammer played at the arena on August 4, 1990, as part of his
Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em World Tour. He also played on June 28, 1992, for his
Too Legit to Quit World Tour.
Gloria Estefan and the
Miami Sound Machine played there on three separate occasions, first on July 17, 1991, during her “Into The Light World Tour,” second on July 31, 1996, during her “Evolution World Tour,” and third on August 19, 2004, during her “Live & Re-Wrapped Tour”.
Metallica performed two consecutive shows, during their
Wherever We May Roam Tour, on January 13–14, 1992. The shows were recorded and later released on VHS and DVD, entitled
Live Shit: Binge & Purge on November 23, 1993.
Nirvana performed during their In Utero
tour on December 29, 1993.
Diana Ross was scheduled to perform during her
Return to Love Tour on August 2, 2000, but the show was cancelled, due to low ticket sales.
Tina Turner was scheduled to perform during her
Twenty Four Seven Tour on December 2, 2000, with
Joe Cocker as her opening act, but the show was canceled. Britney Spears opened her 2004
Onyx Hotel Tour.
U2 performed at the venue for the first two shows of their
Vertigo Tour on March 28 and 30, 2005.
Miley Cyrus performed at the arena on November 8, 2007, during her
Best of Both Worlds Tour.
Lady Gaga performed at the arena on December 19, 2009, during her
Monster Ball Tour.
Eric Clapton performed at the venue on March 15, 2007, with special guests
JJ Cale,
Doyle Bramhall II,
Derek Trucks, and
Robert Cray. Nine years later, Clapton released audio and video/DVD recordings of the show in honor of Cale, who died in 2013, on the live album
Live in San Diego.
Britney Spears performed during
The Circus Starring Britney Spears at the arena on September 24, 2009.
Justin Bieber performed a sold-out show there on October 30, 2010, as part of his
My World Tour; three years later he performed there again to a sold-out show on June 22, 2013, during his
Believe Tour. Bieber returned there on March 29, 2016, to perform to a sold-out show as part of his
Purpose World Tour, and on February 18, 2022, Bieber returned there for his
Justice World Tour.
LMFAO performed for their
Sorry for Party Rocking Tour June 9, 2012.
Selena Gomez performed at the arena on November 8, 2013, during her
Stars Dance Tour.
Madonna played a date there on October 29, 2015, becoming her first-ever performance in the arena, during her
Rebel Heart Tour. The show sold 10,500 seats and grossed over $1.6 million with ticket prices ranging from $50 to $355, becoming one of the most expensive concerts.
Muse played multiple dates there for tours, including
The 2nd Law World Tour in 2013,
Drones World Tour in 2016, and the
Simulation Theory World Tour in 2019.
Jason Aldean played a date there late in 2016, on his Six-String Nation Tour.
Sheryl Crow,
Bob Dylan, and
Willie Nelson played a date there in September 2017 as part of their Outlaw Music Festival tour.
Tyler, The Creator performed at the venue on February 2, 2018, as part of a run of headlining North American tour in support of his recently released album
Flower Boy.
Lana Del Rey performed at the venue on February 15, 2018, as part of her
LA to the Moon Tour, with support from
Kali Uchis.
Maluma performed at the venue on April 8, 2018, as part of his
F.A.M.E tour.
Slayer kicked off their
final tour there on May 10, 2018, with support from
Lamb of God,
Anthrax,
Behemoth, and
Testament.
Shakira performed at the venue on September 5, 2018, as part of her
El Dorado World Tour. Local radio station
KHTS-FM held its annual "Summer Kickoff Concert" at the venue on May 31, 2019. It featured
Halsey,
Ellie Goulding,
CNCO,
Bebe Rexha,
NCT 127, and five other artists.
Jennifer Lopez performed at the arena on June 10, 2019, as part of her
It's My Party Tour. Country-pop singer
Carrie Underwood has performed in the arena multiple times, first on October 1, 2010, during her
Play On Tour; the second on October 20, 2012, during her
Blown Away Tour; the third on September 16, 2016, during her
Storyteller Tour: Stories in the Round; and the fourth on September 10, 2019, during her
Cry Pretty Tour 360, making her one of the artists with the most performances in the arena.
Tame Impala played the first of their
The Slow Rush tour concerts there on March 9, 2020, just prior to the shutdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Harry Styles performed at the arena on November 15, 2021, as part of his
Love On Tour.
Bad Bunny brought his
El Ultimo Tour Del Mundo to Pechanga on February 23, 2022, selling out the arena. Previously, Bad Bunny played at the arena on November 22, 2019, as part of his
X 100Pre Tour and on August 25, 2018, as part of his
La Nueva Religión Tour.
AJR headlined the arena for the first time on May 1, 2024, for their
The Maybe Man Tour.
Other events The arena has hosted several
WWE events, including many episodes of
Raw and
SmackDown, some
ECW episodes, one episode of the original
NXT, and a litany of
house shows. As well as
Vengeance 2001, which saw the unification of the
World Championship and
WWF Championship into the Undisputed WWF Championship,
Taboo Tuesday 2005, and
One Night Stand 2008. The 2011 version of Wrex the Halls was hosted here over two days with headliners
Florence and the Machine and
Blink-182 headlining respective nights. Both nights were sold out. The arena has also been home to events of the original
Roller Games league, featuring its flagship team, the Los Angeles Thunderbirds, as well as the alternating
roller derby leagues of the time, featuring their flagship team, the San Francisco Bay Bombers. The arena hosted Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live in 2019. ==Arena's future==