Iconic Australian stadiums in basketball history

For most basketball fans, the NBA is the ultimate in basketball. It’s where the biggest teams are located and is the easiest to find on TV. The regular season has just ended and in both conferences, we’ve seen some major surprises. The playoffs have started and it will be exciting to see how they end.

This past NBA trading season was one of the busiest we’ve seen in recent years. Some teams that were expected to be at the top for years, such as the LA Lakers, have really struggled this season. We’ll have to wait to see if the trades they made can help them recover some of the magic they’ve lost.

 The NBA isn’t all there is in basketball, however. The National Basketball League of Australia is one of the oldest and biggest basketball leagues in the world. In fact, basketball has been in the country since 1897 – only six years after it began in the United States.

 With such a long history, there are plenty of iconic stadiums to explore. In this blog post, we’re going to look at four of them.

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Qudos Bank Arena – Sydney, New South Wales

 The Qudos Bank Arena, formerly known as The Sydney Super Dome, is the biggest basketball arena in the country. It can seat 17,500 fans when arranged for basketball games, though it can hold over 20,000 when used as a concert venue.

 This stadium was built for the 2000 Sydney Olympics. At these Olympic Games, the Australian Women’s team won the silver medal. It was the first of the Opals’ three silver medals to date – the other two came in 2004 and 2008. The men’s team had made it to the finals but lost to Lithuania in the bronze medal deciding match.

 Winning a medal in the Olympic Games is always a huge achievement; winning one at home just makes that victory even sweeter.

RAC Perth Arena – Perth, Western Australia

 The Perth Arena is one of the most dramatic and unique stadiums in the world. Its geometric design and cobalt blue accent colour are striking and memorable. The stadium’s design was based on the Eternity Puzzle, a type of jigsaw puzzle that was so difficult to solve that its inventor offered a £1m prize to the first person to crack it.

 The stadium was opened in 2012, after a construction period that was longer than anticipated. It has a full capacity of 15,500, though only seats 13,000 for regular season NBL games. It also hosts tennis, netball and UFC events, as well as concerts.

 NBL team the Perth Wildcats call this stadium home. The team is a powerhouse in the league and have been consistent contenders for the championship title for the last decade. They are also the winners of the inaugural NBL Cup.

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 John Cain Arena – Melbourne, Victoria

 When basketball was first introduced to Australia, one of the first basketball leagues was the Victorian Basketball Association. Since then, Melbourne has been one of the top basketball cities in the country. While there has been a basketball team active in the city since the 1930s, Melbourne United are the current team. They grew out of the Melbourne Tigers, a team that was founded in 1975 and joined the NBL in 1984.

 The John Cain Arena might be most famous for hosting matches for the Australian Open every year. However, it is also the home court of both Melbourne United and South East Melbourne Phoenix. It also hosted the Commonwealth Games in 2006.

 Basketball has had its ups and downs in terms of popularity in Australia. Right now, it is on an upswing, with expansion teams being added every year in the last few years. It is an exciting time for the sport and the stadiums that host their games are central to the continuation of their success.

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