Originally known as Charlotte Coliseum, later known as both Independence Arena and Cricket Arena and now called Bojangles' Coliseum, is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena located in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was operated by the Charlotte Coliseum Authority, which also oversees the operation of Bojangles' Coliseum (which was called Charlotte Coliseum prior to 1988), the Charlotte Convention Center, and Ovens Auditorium. It is best known as the home of the NBA's Charlotte Hornets from 1988 to 2002, and the Charlotte Bobcats (now the second incarnation of the Hornets) from 2004 to 2005.
The Coliseum hosted 371 consecutive NBA sell-outs from December 1988 to November 1997, which includes seven playoff games. It hosted its final NBA basketball game on October 26, 2005, a preseason game between the Charlotte Bobcats and the Indiana Pacers.
The city of Charlotte sold the property and the building, along with a Maya Lin commission outside it, was demolished via implosion on June 3, 2007.
Construction on the Charlotte Coliseum began in 1986 and was opened on August 11, 1988, with a dedication by the Reverend Billy Graham. At the time the venue was seen as state-of-the-art, complete with luxury boxes and a large eight-sided video scoreboard. George Shinn had used the under-construction arena as his hole card to get the NBA to place a team in the city. With almost 24,000 seats, it was not only the largest venue in the league, but the largest basketball-specific arena ever to serve as a full-time home for an NBA team. Some thought the Coliseum was too big, but Shinn believed the area's longstanding support for college basketball made the Coliseum a more-than-viable home for an NBA team.
The day after the dedication, the United States Olympic basketball team was scheduled to play an exhibition game at the Coliseum. While preparing for the event, the 40,000pound, $3.2 million scoreboard was being repositioned when it struck the ceiling and crashed to the floor, destroying both it and the court it landed on an alternate floor was brought from Independence Arena in time for the game that night.
This was actually the second building to use the name "Charlotte Coliseum"; Bojangles' Coliseum, located on Independence Boulevard, originally opened as the Coliseum. The older Coliseum is still in use.
The Charlotte 49ers played in the Coliseum during their final days in the Sun Belt Conference from 1988 through 1993. The Coliseum also played host to the 1989 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Tournament, setting a record for attendance. They moved back to their old home, Bojangles' Coliseum (then known as Independence Arena) for the 1993-94 season, partly due to a desire for a more intimate atmosphere. The 49ers rarely came close to filling the arena, and they were frequently swallowed up in the environment. Additionally, the Coliseum was located on the opposite side of the county from UNC Charlotte's campus, and was thus inconvenient to most of its student body.
The arena was also used for college basketball events. The Coliseum hosted the 1994 Men's Final Four and the 1996 Women's Final Four (both jointly hosted by Davidson College and UNC Charlotte), in addition to NCAA Tournament regionals, sub-regionals, eight ACC men's basketball tournaments and the 1989 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament.
