Christchurch Arena

Wolfbrook Arena is an indoor arena in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located in the suburb of Addington. It has gone through a series of name changes, the most recent of which prior to its current name having been Christchurch Arena.

"Westpac Centre" redirects here. For the Melbourne-based sports centre, see Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Centre.

Wolfbrook Arena
Former namesWestpac Trust Centre (1998–2007)
Westpac Arena (2007–2010)
CBS Canterbury Arena (2010–2014)
Horncastle Arena (2014–2020)
Christchurch Arena (2020–2023)
Address55 Jack Hinton Drive Addington 8024
Christchurch
New Zealand
Location55 Jack Hinton Drive
Addington, Christchurch
Canterbury, New Zealand
Coordinates43°32′45″S 172°36′4″E
OwnerVenues Ōtautahi
OperatorVenues Ōtautahi
CapacityNetball: 7,200
Concerts: 8,888
Construction
Opened1998
General contractorCharles Luney
Tenants
1999 Netball World Championships
Mainland Tactix (ANZ Championship) (2008–present)

Description
Main entrance to the arena (2020)

Wolfbrook Arena is New Zealand's second-largest indoor arena with a maximum capacity of 8,888 (depending on event type), it was the largest until the construction of Auckland's Vector Arena in 2007. The indoor stadium is capable of hosting concerts, exhibitions and various sporting events. Provision for international sport and traditional indoor arena events has been integrated into the design requirements.

It has over 6,700 seats for sporting fixtures or, in the concert configuration, the seating can increase to over 7,000.

The Sports and Entertainment complex is located adjacent to the Addington Raceway and Christchurch Stadium and is surrounded by 3,000 car parking spaces. The complex is only 10 minutes from the city centre.

It has been affectionately dubbed 'The Woolshed' by Canterbury Rams basketball fans. Some Christchurch citizens colloquially refer to the arena as the horseshoe, due to its unusual architectural exterior design.

History

Construction company Chas S Luney Ltd built the stadium.[1] The arena opened in September 1998 at a cost of NZ$32 Million. In the first ever sporting match at CBS Canterbury Arena, the Canterbury Rams basketball team suffered a close loss to the Wellington Saints 86–81 in April 1999.

It was built for two main reasons: primarily for the 1999 Netball World Cup in Christchurch, and also because Christchurch was missing out on many concerts and other attractions, because it did not have a suitable indoor arena in the city.

Sporting home teams

Events

Entertainment events

Sporting

Since its opening, it has been host to a number of different sporting events. These include home matches for the Canterbury Rams (basketball), New Zealand Breakers (basketball) and Mainland Tactix (netball) teams. It occasionally hosts international basketball and netball fixtures featuring the Tall Blacks and Silver Ferns respectively. It was also the host of the 1999 Netball World Championships.

It has also been host to a lot of non-regular sporting events. These include various celebrity tennis matches, ice shows, disabled games, karate championships and gymnastics competitions.

In 2007 & 2008 the arena hosted WWE professional wrestling tours, featuring the SmackDown and ECW brands. The arena again hosted a WWE event in September 2017, this time a Raw branded event.

Other uses

The arena plays a key role in the Christchurch economy hosting annual trade shows including the Christchurch Home Show, Women's Lifestyle Expo, Armageddon Expo, and the Go Green Expo.

Christchurch Arena is managed by Venues Otautahi, the same venue management company that manages the Christchurch Town Hall, Orangetheory Stadium, Airforce Museum of New Zealand and Hagley Oval Pavilion. The combined facilities regularly host a variety of different events

The venue is also used for big gala dinners, lunches, balls, and cocktail parties.

Name change

On 18 June 2010, Westpac Arena was officially renamed CBS Canterbury Arena.[31]

On 23 July 2014, CBS Canterbury Arena was officially renamed Horncastle Arena.[32]

On 19 September 2020, Horncastle Arena was officially renamed Christchurch Arena.

On 1 June 2023, Christchurch Arena was officially renamed Wolfbrook Arena. [33]

See also

References
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  2. "Basketball returns home to Cowles", Christchurch City Council, Media Release 29 September 2007.
  3. "Lionel Richie and John Farnham NZ Tour at Horncastle Arena – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  4. "Lionel Richie and John Farnham NZ Tour in New Plymouth – stuff.co.nz". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  5. "Bob Dylan lands in Christchurch – stuff.co.nz". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
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  7. "Ed Sheeran – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  8. "Gig guide: Event details – undertheradar.co.nz". undertheradar.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  9. "Ed Sheeran's secret show in Christchurch – stuff.co.nz". Vicki Anderson – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  10. "Review: Ed Sheeran captivates Christchurch – stuff.co.nz". Vicki Anderson – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  11. "Ed Sheeran delights fans with secret Christchurch show – nzherald.co.nz". nzherald.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  12. "Ricky Martin – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  13. "Gig guide: Event details – undertheradar.co.nz". undertheradar.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  14. "Tour news:Imagine Dragons conjure up two NZ shows – nzherald.co.nz". nzherald.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  15. "Imagine Dragons to play Auckland, Christchurch – newshub.co.nz". newshub.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  16. "Maroon 5 add extra Australia and New Zealand shows to 2015 tour plans - stereoboard.com". Jon Stickler - stereoboard.com. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  17. "Review: Maroon 5 V Tour – stuff.co.nz". James Croot – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  18. "Iron Maiden – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  19. "Maiden announce details of concerts in New Zealand and Australia in April/May 2016 - ironmaiden.com". ironmaiden.com. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  20. "Review: Iron Maiden at Christchurch's Horncastle Arena – stuff.co.nz". Nicole Mathewson – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  21. "Troye Sivan – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  22. "Concert Review: Passionate Troye Sivan connects with Christchurch crowd – stuff.co.nz". Enya Beynon – stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  23. "Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  24. "Macklemore and Ryan Lewis back on tour, returning to Auckland – stuff.co.nz". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  25. "Macklemore & Ryan Lewis live in New Zealand – scoop.co.nz". scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  26. "Tour information – disney.com.au". disney.com.au. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  27. "Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  28. "Ellie Goulding – eventfinda.co.nz". eventfinda.co.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  29. "Ellie Goulding heads to New Zealand for Delirium tour – stuff.co.nz". Hannah McKee – stuff.co.nz. 17 February 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2016.
  30. "A-ha and Rick Astley announce two New Zealand shows". 16 July 2019.
  31. Heather, Ben (19 June 2010). "CBS takes venue naming rights". The Press. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
  32. Meier, Cecile (24 July 2014). "Arena sponsor 'here for the long haul'". The Press. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  33. "New name for Christchurch Arena". Otago Daily Times. 24 May 2023. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
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