AMSOIL Arena is a multipurpose

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

Duluth , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, home to the UMD Men's and UMD Women's hockey teams. It opened in 2010, replacing the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Arena on the waterfront near Duluth's landmark

Aerial Lift Bridge The Aerial Lift Bridge, earlier known as the Aerial Bridge or Aerial Ferry Bridge, is a landmark in the port city of Duluth, Minnesota. The span began life in 1905 as the United States' first transporter bridge: Only one other was ever construct ...

. Naming rights for 20 years were purchased by

AMSOIL AMSOIL Inc. is an American corporation based in Superior, Wisconsin that primarily formulates and packages synthetic lubricants, fuel additives, and filters. Company founder Albert J. Amatuzio developed several synthetic motor oil formulations t ...

, a

corporation A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and ...

based in Superior, Wisconsin, for $6 million, one-third up front. The facility cost nearly $80 million; about half ($38 million) paid by the State of Minnesota through a 2008 bond bill, another 27% (about $21.6 million) by a voter-approved city food-and-beverage tax increase, 12% (about $9.6 million) by UMD, and the last 11% (about $8.8 million) by the DECC. Construction ran from September 2008 to December 2010, and included a 475-space parking garage with a

skywalk A skyway, skybridge, skywalk, or sky walkway is an elevated type of pedway connecting two or more buildings in an urban area, or connecting elevated points within mountainous recreational zones. Urban skyways very often take the form of enclos ...

connecting it to the arena. The first event held at the arena was on December 30, 2010. UMD men's hockey team lost 0–5 to North Dakota before a crowd of 6,764, tied for the team's highest home attendance that season. In their first season in the arena, the UMD men's hockey team won the

NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship ''NCAA men's ice hockey championship'' refers to either of the two tournaments in men's ice hockey – one in Division I and one in Division III – contested by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) since 1971. The NCAA Divisio ...

. In 2012, the arena hosted the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Tournament, in which

beat

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, 4–2. The arena's attendance record was set on June 20, 2018 during a President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

rally, which drew 8,372 people. The attendance record for a sporting event was set on January 25, 2020, when UMD men's hockey team lost to their rival,

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

, 2–3 in front of 7,711 fans.

Comparison to DECC Arena

Arena Usage

Hockey

AMSOIL Arena is primarily used as a hockey arena home to the University of Minnesota-Duluth's men's and women's hockey teams. The arena hosted the 2012 NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Tournament. AMSOIL Arena hosted the 2017 Ice Breaker Tournament, held October 6-7th 2017. Four teams participated in the tournament. Michigan Tech defeated Union College 6-3 and University of Minnesota Duluth defeated University of Minnesota 4–3 in overtime in the tournament's first round. In the final round, University of Minnesota Duluth fell to tournament champion Michigan Tech 4–3, while in the consolation game the University of Minnesota beat Union College 2–0. Other hockey events include preseason practices for the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...

-open to the public,

Minnesota State High School League The Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is a voluntary, non-profit association for the support and governance of interscholastic activities at high schools in Minnesota, United States. The association supports interscholastic athletics an ...

section 7A and 7AA tournament games, as well as a high-school all-star game.

Basketball

AMSOIL Arena hosted the Harlem Globetrotters in 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019, for which Minnesota Lynx's ( WNBA) court has been brought up from Minneapolis, Minnesota. AMSOILArena,April12011

Events

AMSOIL Arena has held many different types of events, from comedians

Jeff Dunham Jeffrey Douglas Dunham (born April 18, 1962) is an American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor who has also appeared on numerous television shows, including ''Late Show with David Letterman'', ''Comedy Central Presents'', ''The Tonigh ...

and

Jim Gaffigan James Christopher Gaffigan (born July 7, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. His material often addresses fatherhood, laziness, food, religion, and general observations. He is regarded as a "clean" comic, using l ...

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

. The local AAD Shrine holds its annual AAD Shrine Circus fundraiser at the arena each April. The arena also hosts concerts. The

Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra The Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra (DSSO) is an American orchestra based in Duluth, Minnesota. Founded in 1932 as the Duluth Civic Orchestra, it became the city's first permanent symphony orchestra. In 2000, it performed the North American premi ...

had the first non-sporting event held at the arena, "Cirque de la Symphonie on Ice", on December 31, 2010, a day after the facility opened. It can also be converted to host dinners and conventions. On June 20, 2018 President

held a rally in the arena that saw a record breaking attendance of 8,372. The following is not a complete list of concerts.

Awards

In 2013, ''Stadium Journey'' rated AMSOIL Arena as the best stadium experience in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. In 2014 and 2015, ''Stadium Journey'' rated AMSOIL Arena as the second best stadium experience in the United States and Canada, behind

Oriole Park at Camden Yards The Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a baseball stadium located in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the home field of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles, and the first of the "retro" major league ballparks constructed during the 1990s and early ...

home to

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

. AMSOIL Arena was ranked the best college hockey arena by ''Stadium Journey'' in 2014 and 2015. ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' named AMSOIL Arena one of its 10 "Golden Zamboni" winners for its uniqueness among the nation's college hockey venues.

References

{{Coord, 46, 46, 53, N, 92, 05, 53, W, type:landmark_region:US-MN, display=title College ice hockey venues in the United States Sports venues in Minnesota Convention centers in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Duluth, Minnesota Tourist attractions in Duluth, Minnesota Indoor ice hockey venues in Minnesota 2010 establishments in Minnesota Sports venues completed in 2010 Sports Venues in Duluth MN-WI Metro Sports venues in northern Minnesota