History
editPlanning
editOn February 4, 1993, then-Mayor of Nashville Phil Bredesen informed the Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County that he was in need of $150,000 to begin work on a multi-purpose sports and music venue in downtown Nashville, with plans to open in mid-1996.[1] He proposed his vision to the citizens of Nashville, Tennessee, on April 1 in the now-famous "helicopter speech", which detailed Breseden's ideal image of how the Broadway district of Nashville would appear from the aerial view of a helicopter.[2] In Bredesen's original conception, the main purpose of a 25,000-capacity arena on Broadway was not for athletics, but to encourage touring musicians to schedule a performance in Nashville rather than in nearby Murfreesboro. "The sports thing," Bredesen told reporters in 2016, "really came along a little bit later."[3] Despite this, the city began looking in earnest for a permanent athletic tenant in late May, when Edward Gaylord applied for a National Basketball Association (NBA) expansion team that would make its home in the arena.[4] At the end of the month, the Ohio Valley Conference decided to move its annual men's basketball tournament, which had previously taken place in Lexington, Kentucky, to Nashville. They would play at either the Memorial Gymnasium or Nashville Municipal Auditorium until the new arena was completed.[5] Soon after, the Southeastern Conference said that they would consider the new Nashville arena as a neutral site for their own men's basketball tournament.[6]
Construction
editNaming rights and ownership
editIn 1999, the Gaylord Entertainment Company struck a 20-year, $80 million deal with the arena owners for the naming rights to the arena in Nashville; the deal worked out to $4 million annually going to the Predators franchise.[7]
Modifications
editFacilities
editDesign
editEvents and tenants
editNashville Predators
editConcerts and music
editNashville Kats
editCollege basketball
editIn 2018, the SEC renewed its agreement with the Nashville Sports Council to keep the tournament at Bridgestone through at least 2030, with options extending through 2035.[8]
Night of Champions
editAttendance records
editSingle-game attendance
editSeason attendance
editIn popular culture
editReferences
edit- ^ Murray, Elizabeth (February 5, 1993). "Bredesen's eager to get arena going". The Tennessean. p. 1A. Retrieved January 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ammenheuser, David (January 22, 2016). "Arena took downtown Nashville from eerie to epic". The Tennessean. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
- ^ Rau, Nate (January 22, 2016). "Phil Bredesen's arena idea forever changed Nashville". The Tennessean. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
- ^ Power, Ted (May 26, 1993). "Nashville entertains NBA hopes". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Wood, Tom (May 28, 1993). "Proposed arena lures OVC basketball tournaments". The Tennessean. p. 1C. Retrieved January 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Climer, David (June 1, 1993). "Proposed arena tempta SEC". The Tennessean. p. 3C. Retrieved January 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Gaylord Entertainment Center". The Tennessean. September 12, 1999. p. 207. Retrieved October 3, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Stephenson, Creg (November 14, 2018). "SEC basketball tournament extends agreement with Nashville through 2035". Retrieved October 2, 2021.
