Nationwide Arena

The 684,000 square foot arena held its first event on September 9th 2000 with a concert by Tim McGraw. The first sporting event was a exhibition hockey game on eleven nights later with the hometown Columbus Blue Jackets taking on the Detroit Red Wings. The arena was part of a multi-year effort to attract a major professional sports franchise and support an ambitious development plan for downtown Columbus that involved the demolition of the former prison and other historic structures in favor of an arena, modern office buildings and hotels, and a convention center.

In addition to the NFL, the arena has hosted NCAA basketball tournament games and numerous World Wrestling Entertainment events and Ultimate Fighting Championship bouts. President Barack Obama joined two music legends Jay-Z and Bruce Springsteen at Nationwide on 5 November 2012 in the heat of a highly contested campaign. Ohio was a battleground state at that time and the event drew a packed crowd of supporters.

Financing for the arena was provided by the Nationwide insurance company after a public finance referendum failed. The arena was part of a major plan to replace the former prison, which had closed in the 1980s, with a major entertainment district for Ohio's largest city.

Accessed July 21th 2020. http://www.nationwidearena.com/contact-us.

Accessed July 23th 2020. https://www.mmaweekly.com/strikeforce-columbus-results-and-play-by-play.

Accessed July 27th, 2020. https://www.nationwidearena.com/events