Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum
Encyclopedia
Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum (also Hockeytown State Fair Coliseum) is a 5,600-seat multi-purpose arena
in Detroit, Michigan
. It is home to the Wayne State University
Warriors ice hockey
team
. The arena was also host to the 2006 men's and women's College Hockey America
conference tournament. Wayne State played its first collegiate hockey season in 1999 at the arena following the coliseum's renovation. Wayne State played its next three seasons at the Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena
in Fraser and then two seasons at the Compuware Sports Arena in Plymouth before returning to the Coliseum in 2005.
Between early 1999 and mid 2000, the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum was the site of three different Extreme Championship Wrestling
house shows.
In 2006 the Royal Oak-Shrine Catholic High School
Knights ice hockey
team began playing at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum. The team left in 2007 and is returning for the start of the 2008-2009 season for their first varsity season.
The in-limbo Motor City Mechanics
, planned to resume operations in 2008 and play at the Coliseum; however, this has not yet come to pass.
The coliseum, built in 1922, is part of the Michigan State Fair
, the oldest state fair in the United States. The coliseum has also been the long-time venue of the Detroit appearance of the Shrine Circus
.
The exterior of the coliseum was used as the Flint Fairgrounds Coliseum in the 2008 movie Semi-Pro
.
Arena
An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...
in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. It is home to the Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
Warriors ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team
Team
A team comprises a group of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks.A group in itself does not necessarily constitute a team...
. The arena was also host to the 2006 men's and women's College Hockey America
College Hockey America
College Hockey America is a women's college ice hockey conference in the United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. The conference is currently made up of four women's teams in New York and Pennsylvania....
conference tournament. Wayne State played its first collegiate hockey season in 1999 at the arena following the coliseum's renovation. Wayne State played its next three seasons at the Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena
Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena
Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena is a 3,400-seat multi-purpose arena in Fraser, Michigan. It is the largest of the 5 rinks inside of the Great Lakes Sports City building. The arena was the home of the Motor City Mechanics of the former United Hockey League...
in Fraser and then two seasons at the Compuware Sports Arena in Plymouth before returning to the Coliseum in 2005.
Between early 1999 and mid 2000, the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum was the site of three different Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
house shows.
In 2006 the Royal Oak-Shrine Catholic High School
Shrine Catholic High School
Shrine Catholic High School is a private, co-educational, Roman Catholic secondary high school located in Royal Oak, Michigan, affiliated with National Shrine of the Little Flower Church. It has an attached middle school called the "Academy"...
Knights ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team began playing at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum. The team left in 2007 and is returning for the start of the 2008-2009 season for their first varsity season.
The in-limbo Motor City Mechanics
Motor City Mechanics
The Motor City Mechanics were a professional ice hockey team of the United Hockey League. The Mechanics played their first two seasons, from 2004–2006, at Great Lakes Sports City Superior Arena in Fraser, Michigan...
, planned to resume operations in 2008 and play at the Coliseum; however, this has not yet come to pass.
The coliseum, built in 1922, is part of the Michigan State Fair
Michigan State Fair
-History:The first official Michigan State Fair was held in 1849, which is claimed by the state of Michigan to be the oldest state fair in the United States. The first fair was held in Detroit, Michigan. Subsequent fairs were held in other cities until it received its permanent home in 1905 at the...
, the oldest state fair in the United States. The coliseum has also been the long-time venue of the Detroit appearance of the Shrine Circus
Shrine Circus
The Shrine Circus is a circus founded in the United States in 1906. It travels to roughly 120 cities per year in the United States and a separate unit travels to about 40 in Canada. It is affiliated with the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, a.k.a. Shriners.-History:The first...
.
The exterior of the coliseum was used as the Flint Fairgrounds Coliseum in the 2008 movie Semi-Pro
Semi-Pro
Semi-Pro is a 2008 American sports screwball comedy film from New Line Cinema. The film was directed by Kent Alterman and stars Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin and Maura Tierney. The film was shot in Los Angeles near Dodger Stadium , in Detroit and in Flint, Michigan...
.