Bell Centre
The Bell Centre (French: Centre Bell) is a sports arena in Montreal, Quebec. The arena opened on March 16, 1996, and is the current home to the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). The arena was originally known as Molson Centre (French: Centre Molson) from 1996 to 2002. Bell Canada currently has naming rights for the arena.
Former names | New Montreal Forum (before construction–1996), Molson Centre, Centre Molson (1996–2002) |
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Location | 1909[1] Avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal, Montreal, Quebec H4B 5G0 |
Coordinates | 45°29′46″N 73°34′10″W / 45.49611°N 73.56944°W |
Owner | Molson family |
Operator | Molson family |
Capacity | Hockey: 21,273 (1996-2014) 21,287 (2014-2017) 21,302 (2017-2021) 21,105 (2021-present) Basketball: 22,114 Concerts: 15,000 Amphitheatre: 10,000 to 14,000 Theatre: 5,000 to 9,000 Hemicycle: 2,000 to 3,500 MMA: 16,000 to 23,152 |
Field size | 780,000 square feet (72,000 m2) |
Construction | |
Started | June 22, 1993 |
Opened | March 16, 1996 |
Expanded | 1981 |
Construction cost | C$270 million[2] |
Architect | LeMay & Associate, LLC. |
Project manager | IBI/DAA Group |
Structural engineer | Dessau |
Services engineer | SNC-Lavalin |
General contractor | Huber, Hunt & Nichols |
Tenants | |
Montreal Canadiens (NHL) (1996–present) Montreal Impact (NPSL) (1997–2000) Montreal Rocket (QMJHL) (2001–2003) Montreal Express (NLL) (2002) |
The arena has also held several WWE events, which includes the Survivor Series in 1997, where the infamous Montreal Screwjob between Bret Hart, Vince McMahon and Shawn Michaels took place, as well as other pay-per-views including No Way Out in 2003 and Breaking Point. All Elite Wrestling (AEW) have also hosted episodes of their weekly television shows Dynamite, Rampage, Collision on December 5 and 6, 2023.
References
change- ↑ "Directions & Parking". Centre Bell. Archived from the original on 2015-05-24. Retrieved 2014-10-15.
- ↑ Turner, Randy (9 April 2009). "Buyers are lining up for these Canadiens". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 2014-10-15.
Other websites
changeEvents and Tenants | ||
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Preceded by Montreal Forum |
Home of the Montreal Canadiens 1996 – present |
Succeeded by current |
Preceded by Philips Arena |
Host of the NHL All-Star Game 2009 |
Succeeded by RBC Center |