Climate Pledge Arena

Climate Pledge Arena

Climate Pledge Arena is a big indoor arena in Seattle, Washington. It is located in the Seattle Center, a large entertainment area north of downtown Seattle. The arena opened in 1962 and was built for the Century 21 Exposition. After many years, it was closed in 2018 for a major renovation.

Today, Climate Pledge Arena is home to several sports teams, including the Seattle Kraken hockey team and the Seattle Storm basketball team. It can hold thousands of people for games and events. The arena was once home to the Seattle SuperSonics basketball team before they moved to Oklahoma City. In 2020, Amazon bought the naming rights and changed the name to Climate Pledge Arena. The arena is important to Seattle’s sports and entertainment scene.

History

Seattle Center Coliseum

The arena opened in 1962 as the Washington State Pavilion for the Century 21 Exposition. After the event, Seattle bought it and turned it into the Washington State Coliseum. It became part of the new Seattle Center. The Seattle University men's basketball team was the first big team to play there. In 1964, it was renamed the Seattle Center Coliseum. That year, the Seattle Totems moved in. The Coliseum became well-known for hosting the Seattle SuperSonics starting in 1967.

The Coliseum hosted important basketball events, including two NBA Finals in the late 1970s. It also hosted the NBA All-Star Game once. In the 1980s, the arena had some problems, like rain leaking onto the court during a game.

Rebirth as KeyArena

The arena was rebuilt between 1994 and 1995. The city spent $74.5 million, and the SuperSonics spent $21 million. The new design kept the original roofline and added private suites and better seating.

Redevelopment into Climate Pledge Arena, arrival of the Kraken

In October 2016, Seattle announced plans to change KeyArena. Two groups offered ideas, and the Oak View Group was chosen. The city approved the plans in December 2017. The arena closed in October 2018 for two years of work.

Climate Pledge Arena opened to the public on October 19, 2021. The first sports event was a Seattle Kraken game on October 23, 2021. The arena became home to the Seattle Storm in 2022 and later hosted games for the Professional Women's Hockey League.

Sporting events

Mixed martial arts

Climate Pledge Arena has hosted many UFC fighting events. The first was on March 26, 2011, called UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Davis. The UFC came back several times over the years, including shows on December 8, 2012, UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Diaz, and July 27, 2013, UFC on Fox: Johnson vs. Moraga. After a long break, the UFC returned on February 22, 2025, with UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Song, and again on March 28, 2026 for UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs. Pyfer.

Concerts

The Beatles played at the arena twice, once in 1964 and again in 1966.

Metallica recorded some live shows here in 1989 for a special video.

U2 performed here in 2005, with Kings of Leon as the opening act.

Destiny's Child had a concert here in 2005 during their last tour.

In 2012, Madonna had two big shows here.

Foo Fighters and Death Cab for Cutie were the first acts to play at the newly renovated Climate Pledge Arena in 2021.

Korean boy group Stray Kids performed here in July 2022 as part of their big tour.

Dua Lipa ended her U.S. tour with two concerts here in October 2025, with special guests Brandi Carlile and Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie.

Seating capacity

The Climate Pledge Arena can be arranged in different ways for different events. Originally, it could hold 13,200 people for basketball, 12,250 for ice hockey, 16,000 for meetings, and 14,770 for boxing.

After updates, the arena now seats 18,300 for basketball, 17,151 for ice hockey, and 17,200 for concerts. The most people ever seen at a basketball game was 18,343, when the Seattle Storm played against the Indiana Fever on May 22, 2024.

Features and amenities

Climate Pledge Arena is a very large space that is 740,000 square feet big and can hold 17,100 people for ice hockey games. Many of the seats are below ground level, and the main entrance is at ground level. There are many places to buy food, and they use a special system called Amazon One so fans don’t have to wait in line to pay.

Instead of one big screen hanging in the middle, the arena has two six-sided screens above the ice. This way, everyone can see them without blocking the view of the game. The arena also works hard to be green. It tries to leave no waste after events, use rainwater to make the ice, and serve food from nearby farms. Fans can also get a free pass to use public buses before and after games. In the first year, one out of four fans used the bus to get to the arena.

Transportation

Climate Pledge Arena is in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood. There are several ways to get there.

You can take the King County Metro bus from places like Queen Anne Hill and Downtown Seattle. The RapidRide D Line and other buses often go to the west side of the arena and Downtown Seattle. Bus Route 8 goes to Capitol Hill and the Central District.

The Seattle Center Monorail stops at the arena. It goes to Westlake Center and the Westlake light rail station in downtown. During big events, the monorail runs more often.

There are three public parking garages near the arena. With extra parking lots and street parking, there are about 7,400 spots. The arena is close to the Mercer Street exit on Interstate 5 and State Route 99.

A new Link light rail service to the Seattle Center and Climate Pledge Arena is planned to start in 2035. It will be part of the Ballard–Downtown extension.