The Carver–Hawkeye Arena is a multi-purpose indoor

arena An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...

located in

Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, fifth-most populous c ...

. Opened in 1983, it is the home court for the University of

Iowa Hawkeyes The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 20 sports, 7 for men and 13 for women; The teams participate in Division I of the Nati ...

men's and

women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It was first played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large parts via women's college compet ...

teams, as well as the university's

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

and gymnastics teams. It was named for the late industrialist Roy J. Carver of Muscatine, Iowa, a prominent statewide booster who donated $9.2 million to the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

before his death in 1981.''Carver–Hawkeye Arena: Celebrating 25 Years.''

, 2008. Prior to the arena's opening, Iowa's athletic teams played at the

Iowa Field House The Iowa Field House is a multi-purpose arena in Iowa City, Iowa. Opened in 1927, it held up to 13,365 people at its height. At one time, it housed all Iowa athletic teams and coaching offices before the construction of additional facilities, mos ...

History

Prior to playing in Carver–Hawkeye Arena, Iowa teams played in Close Hall (1902–1905) and then the first Iowa Armory (1905–1922). The first Armory was at the site of the current UI Communications Center building currently sits, across from the Library on the East Side of the

Iowa River The Iowa River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the state of Iowa in the United States. It is about longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 and i ...

. Iowa teams moved to the second Iowa Armory (1922–1926), and then to the adjoining

(1926–1982), built directly beside the second Iowa Armory, which was incorporated into the new Field House facility. In 1927, the

was opened during Paul Belding's tenure as

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

. Considered as a "magnificent structure for its day," the Field House was home to Iowa's basketball and wrestling teams and included an indoor track and swimming pool. The Field House, however, was known for its steel balconies and sub-par

acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

, along with columns that obstructed views. When demand was high for Hawkeye basketball, bleachers were placed behind the baskets, allowing some 15,000 to attend games. Season ticket sales increased during the highly successful tenures of

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

Ralph Miller Ralph H. Miller (March 9, 1919 – May 15, 2001) was an American college basketball coach, a head coach for 38 years at three universities: Wichita (now known as Wichita State), Iowa, and Oregon State. With an overall record of , his teams had ...

and

Lute Olson Robert Luther "Lute" Olson (September 22, 1934 – August 27, 2020) was an American basketball coach, who was inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame. He was the head co ...

, and support for a new arena gradually increased. Following approval from the Iowa

Board of Regents In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual co ...

, construction of Carver–Hawkeye Arena began. Entirely funded by private contributions, the arena was expected to be open for the 1982–83 school year, but weather slowed construction to the point where the first event was held on January 3, 1983. Iowa's wrestling team defeated

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

and two days later, the men's basketball team played their first game – a loss to

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

– in the new arena. An NCAA attendance record for women's basketball was set on February 3, 1985. 22,157 were in attendance at Carver-Hawkeye arena as

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

lost to rival

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

. Notable athletic events in the arena include the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1 ...

and

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

wrestling championships, the National Duals, the U.S. Olympic wrestling trials in 1984 and 2012, the UWW World Cup in 2018, and the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament. The arena also serves as the site of commencement exercises for several of the university's colleges, and has hosted concerts by artists such as U2,

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

Stevie Nicks Stephanie Lynn Nicks (born May 26, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist. After starting her career as a duo with her then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham, releasing the album ...

, *NSYNC,

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985 as a merger of local bands L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band's "classic" line-up consisted of vocalist Axl R ...

, Old Dominion, and

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...

, and speeches by Former Presidents

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

and

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

as well as

Desmond Tutu Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian, known for his work as an anti-apartheid and human rights activist. He was Bishop of Johannesburg from 1985 to 1986 and then Archbishop ...

and

Jane Goodall Dame Jane Morris Goodall (; born Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall; 3 April 1934), formerly Baroness Jane van Lawick-Goodall, is an English zoologist, Primatology, primatologist and Anthropology, anthropologist. She is considered the world's foremo ...

. Carver-Hawkeye also hosted many events in place of Hancher Auditorium and

Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in u ...

' U.S. Cellular Center while both venues underwent renovations after the Iowa flood of 2008. On December 6, 2008, Iowa set the national collegiate wrestling dual meet attendance record as 15,955 fans packed the arena for the

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State be ...

match. The previous record of 15,646 was set Feb. 1, 2002, when Minnesota hosted Iowa at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Barry Davis,

Tom Brands Tom Brands (born April 9, 1968) is an American former Olympic wrestler and is currently the head coach of the University of Iowa men's wrestling team. He won a gold medal in the 1996 Summer Olympics. An intense competitor, Brands' wrestling c ...

Brent Metcalf Brent Metcalf (born July 14, 1986) is an American former freestyle and folkstyle wrestler. Metcalf was a three-time member of the US World Team and two-time NCAA wrestling champion at the University of Iowa. Biography As a prep wrestler, Me ...

Tony Ramos Antônio de Carvalho Barbosa (born 25 August 1948), known professionally as Tony Ramos, is a Brazilian actor. Ramos has played leading roles in major telenovela productions for more than four decades. Many of his most famous roles share the ch ...

, and

Spencer Lee Spencer Richard Lee (born October 14, 1998) is an American freestyle and former folkstyle wrestler who competes at 57 kilograms. In freestyle, he earned a silver medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics, and is a two-time US National champion and t ...

are the only Hawkeye wrestlers to never lose a match during their college career in Carver–Hawkeye Arena. In 2016, a new scoreboard was added to the arena. It measures at high by wide. On April 7 and 8, 2018, the arena hosted the

Wrestling World Cup Wrestling World Cup is an international wrestling competition among teams representing member nations of the United World Wrestling (UWW) the sport's global governing body. The cups have been conducted by FILA (the UWW predecessor) every year sin ...

. A #22 marker is on the basketball court there at the spot where guard

Caitlin Clark Caitlin Elizabeth Clark (born January 22, 2002) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Regarded as one of the greatest female collegiate players, Clark was tw ...

surpassed

Kelsey Plum Kelsey Christine Plum (born August 24, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Nicknamed "Plum Dawg", she is a three-time WNBA All-Star Game, WNBA All- ...

's NCAA women's career scoring record against

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

on February 15, 2024 in a 106–89 win. The arena also hosted an exhibition game between the WNBA's

Indiana Fever The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...

– including Clark after the franchise selected her first overall in the 2024 draft – and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

on May 4, 2025. The Fever won 108–44, with the game including Clark making a shot into the same basket beyond the marker in the third quarter.

External links

Carver–Hawkeye Arena: The Home of the Hawkeyes
webpage (HawkeyeSports.com: Facilities)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carver-Hawkeye Arena College gymnastics venues in the United States College volleyball venues in the United States College wrestling venues in the United States Iowa Hawkeyes basketball venues Iowa Hawkeyes wrestling venues Sports venues completed in 1983 University of Iowa campus 1983 establishments in Iowa

History

See also

External links

References