ARCO Arena opened on September 20, 1985, in Sacramento, California, as a fast-tracked, low-cost venue built to give the newly relocated Sacramento Kings a place to play. The team had moved from Kansas City after the NBA approved the relocation that April on the condition that a new arena be built, and with no time to construct a permanent facility, local developer Buzz Oates put up a $12 million building at 1625 North Market Boulevard in only a matter of months.
Originally known as the Sacramento Sports Arena, the building was renamed after Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) signed a ten-year, $5 million naming rights deal in August 1985, a pact often cited as the first time an NBA team sold naming rights to a brand-new arena. Seating just 10,333, it was the smallest arena in the league, but Kings games sold out completely for all three seasons the team played there before a larger ARCO Arena opened across town in 1988.
- Sacramento Kings played here 1985–1988. See every Kings arena →
Stats at a Glance
- Team: Sacramento Kings (NBA), 1985-1988
- Location: 1625 North Market Boulevard, Sacramento, California
- Opened: September 20, 1985
- Closed: 1988 (repurposed, not demolished)
- Capacity: 10,333
- Construction Cost: about $12 million
- Notable Fact: Nicknamed ‘The Madhouse on Market Street’
A Hastily Built Home for a Relocated Team
When the Kings’ ownership group won NBA approval to move the franchise from Kansas City, there was no existing arena ready to host them, so Buzz Oates Group of Companies broke ground in January 1985 and delivered a working venue in about eight months. At 10,333 seats, it was the smallest arena in the NBA, with locker rooms and only four suites that reflected its purely functional, temporary design.
The building’s first event was actually a fashion show rather than a basketball game, but once the Kings took the floor that fall, the tight seating bowl created an unusually loud, close-quarters atmosphere that quickly earned the arena its nickname.
Three Sellout Seasons and a Quiet Second Life
For all three seasons the Kings called it home, from 1985-86 through 1987-88, every game reportedly sold out, a remarkable run for a team adjusting to a new city in a makeshift building. Once the larger second ARCO Arena opened nearby in November 1988, the original venue’s run as a sports arena ended.
Unlike many short-lived sports venues, the building wasn’t torn down. It was converted into office space, first for Sprint Communications and later for the California Department of Consumer Affairs, which established its headquarters there in December 2005, and the structure still stands today.
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Bleachers for three hours, but with back support. Folds flat and clips to the bench.
For upper-deck seats. Watch line play at the stadium, or the far side of the park from the top of a lift hill.
Sherpa-lined and windproof, with a waterproof back for wet bleachers. Folds into its own pouch.
ARCO Arena (1985) FAQs
Why was ARCO Arena built so small in 1985?
It was meant as a temporary venue to let the Sacramento Kings start playing immediately after relocating from Kansas City, while a larger permanent arena was planned. Its 10,333-seat capacity made it the smallest arena in the NBA at the time.
Where did the name ARCO Arena come from?
The venue was originally called the Sacramento Sports Arena until Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) signed a ten-year, $5 million naming rights deal in August 1985, one of the earliest such deals for a brand-new NBA arena.
Is the original ARCO Arena building still standing?
Yes. After the Kings moved to a new, larger ARCO Arena in 1988, the original building was converted into office space and has housed the California Department of Consumer Affairs headquarters since 2005.
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Photo: Coolcaesar / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.