MetroCentre is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose
arenaAn 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
Rockford, IllinoisRockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Rockford is often referred to as "The Forest City" and is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2000 U.S...
. The arena opened in 1981 with a concert by
Dionne WarwickDionne Warwick is an American singer, actress, activist, United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, former United States Ambassador of Health, and humanitarian. She is best known for her partnership with songwriters and producers Burt Bacharach and Hal David...
. It was the home of the
Rockford LightningThe Rockford Lightning were a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association. They were based in Rockford, Illinois. The Lightning were the oldest team in the CBA, originally existing as the Lancaster Red Roses from Lancaster, Pennsylvania...
Continental Basketball AssociationThe Continental Basketball Association is a professional men's basketball league in the United States. It is affiliated with USA Basketball, the sport's governing body in the United States.- History :...
basketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of 5 players try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a
10 foot high hoop under organized rules...
teamA 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...
for many years. It is currently home to the
Rockford IceHogsThis page is for the defunct United Hockey League team. For its active American Hockey League successor, see Rockford IceHogs.The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team in Rockford, Illinois USA. They were a member of the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2007. Rockford played home...
ice hockeyIce Hockey is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a puck into the opposing team's goal. It is a fast-paced and physical sport...
team, the
Rock River RaptorsThis page is for the Continental Indoor Football League team, for the National Premier Soccer League team also based in Rockford, see Rockford Raptors....
indoor footballIndoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas.-Early history:The first documented indoor football games were those played at Madison Square Garden in 1902 and 1903 known as the "World Series of Pro Football." They were the...
team, and the
Rockford RampageThe Rockford Rampage are a charter member of the National Indoor Soccer League based in Rockford, Illinois. Prior to 2008, they were a member of the American Indoor Soccer League's Central Division.-History:...
indoor soccerIndoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink. The most important difference in play is that the indoor field is surrounded by a wall...
team. It also hosted the first
Arena Football LeagueThe Arena Football League was founded in 1987 as an indoor American football by Jim Foster. It was played indoors on a smaller field than American football, resulting in a faster-paced and higher-scoring game...
test game in 1986 between the
Chicago PoliticiansThe Chicago Politicians was a team formed in 1986 by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster to play an initial "test game" in Rockford, Illinois at the MetroCentre. They were defeated by the Rockford Metros, 30-18...
and the
Rockford MetrosThe Rockford Metros was an Arena football team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster for the purposes of playing a "test game" in Rockford, Illinois in the spring of 1986 at the MetroCentre. The team was named after the MetroCentre itself. Players were taken from different semi-pro...
.
WWEWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
holds one event yearly in the MetroCentre. Due to its outdoor appearance it is often referred to as the "Big Orange Box", although Icehogs officials refer to the arena as "the Barnyard".
Certainly the most significant event in MetroCentre history occurred in the inaugural year, when the Rolling Stones made an appearance on their
Tattoo YouTattoo You is an album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1981. The follow-up to Emotional Rescue, it proved to be a big critical and commercial success upon its release and is still celebrated as one of The Rolling Stones' finest full-length releases, despite its prolonged recording...
tour.
MetroCentre is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose
arenaAn 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
Rockford, IllinoisRockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Rockford is often referred to as "The Forest City" and is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2000 U.S...
. The arena opened in 1981 with a concert by
Dionne WarwickDionne Warwick is an American singer, actress, activist, United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, former United States Ambassador of Health, and humanitarian. She is best known for her partnership with songwriters and producers Burt Bacharach and Hal David...
. It was the home of the
Rockford LightningThe Rockford Lightning were a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association. They were based in Rockford, Illinois. The Lightning were the oldest team in the CBA, originally existing as the Lancaster Red Roses from Lancaster, Pennsylvania...
Continental Basketball AssociationThe Continental Basketball Association is a professional men's basketball league in the United States. It is affiliated with USA Basketball, the sport's governing body in the United States.- History :...
basketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of 5 players try to score points against one another by placing a ball through a
10 foot high hoop under organized rules...
teamA 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...
for many years. It is currently home to the
Rockford IceHogsThis page is for the defunct United Hockey League team. For its active American Hockey League successor, see Rockford IceHogs.The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team in Rockford, Illinois USA. They were a member of the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2007. Rockford played home...
ice hockeyIce Hockey is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use sticks to direct a puck into the opposing team's goal. It is a fast-paced and physical sport...
team, the
Rock River RaptorsThis page is for the Continental Indoor Football League team, for the National Premier Soccer League team also based in Rockford, see Rockford Raptors....
indoor footballIndoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within indoor arenas.-Early history:The first documented indoor football games were those played at Madison Square Garden in 1902 and 1903 known as the "World Series of Pro Football." They were the...
team, and the
Rockford RampageThe Rockford Rampage are a charter member of the National Indoor Soccer League based in Rockford, Illinois. Prior to 2008, they were a member of the American Indoor Soccer League's Central Division.-History:...
indoor soccerIndoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink. The most important difference in play is that the indoor field is surrounded by a wall...
team. It also hosted the first
Arena Football LeagueThe Arena Football League was founded in 1987 as an indoor American football by Jim Foster. It was played indoors on a smaller field than American football, resulting in a faster-paced and higher-scoring game...
test game in 1986 between the
Chicago PoliticiansThe Chicago Politicians was a team formed in 1986 by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster to play an initial "test game" in Rockford, Illinois at the MetroCentre. They were defeated by the Rockford Metros, 30-18...
and the
Rockford MetrosThe Rockford Metros was an Arena football team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster for the purposes of playing a "test game" in Rockford, Illinois in the spring of 1986 at the MetroCentre. The team was named after the MetroCentre itself. Players were taken from different semi-pro...
.
WWEWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is a publicly-traded, privately-controlled integrated media and sports entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
holds one event yearly in the MetroCentre. Due to its outdoor appearance it is often referred to as the "Big Orange Box", although Icehogs officials refer to the arena as "the Barnyard".
Certainly the most significant event in MetroCentre history occurred in the inaugural year, when the Rolling Stones made an appearance on their
Tattoo YouTattoo You is an album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1981. The follow-up to Emotional Rescue, it proved to be a big critical and commercial success upon its release and is still celebrated as one of The Rolling Stones' finest full-length releases, despite its prolonged recording...
tour. The 10/1/81 concert was added to the tour in response to a radio station petition drive. The actual petitions were cut up and used to hold a lottery for the right to buy tickets. Each person drawn could purchase two of the $15.00 tickets.
The facility hosted the 1984 and 1986
Mid-American ConferenceThe Mid-American Conference is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members located...
men's basketball tournaments as well as numerous
IHSAThe Illinois High School Association is one of 52
1 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of...
basketball sectional and super-sectional tournaments. In addition to athletic events, it hosts concerts, conventions, and local high school graduations.
In 2006, The city of Rockford along with
Winnebago CountyWinnebago County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. As of 2000, the population was 278,418. Its county seat is Rockford, Illinois.Winnebago County is part of the Rockford, Illinois, Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
announced plans to issue 23 million dollars in bonds to fund a massive renovation of the Arena. The MetroCentre renovation began in the summer of 2007. Projects already completed include a state-of-the-art video scoreboard, Club Boxes, Club Lounge, 200-person Group Terrace additional bathrooms, and new concession stands and food courts. Other amenities to be completed in 2008 include an exterior façade update, new box office and main entrance, 11 Luxury Corporate Suites, and a retail center. Key to the plan was an agreement with the
Chicago BlackhawksThe Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won three Stanley Cup Championships and thirteen division titles since their founding in 1926...
to put an
American Hockey LeagueThe American Hockey League is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League . 28 of the 30 NHL teams have exclusive affiliation agreements with one of the AHL's 29 active clubs...
(AHL) team in Rockford for the next 10 years. This team acts as the Blackhawks' farm team. The MetroCentre authority purchased a AHL franchise, and bought the rights to name it the "IceHogs."