The BMO Harris Bank Center (formerly known as Rockford MetroCentre) is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena

Arena

An arena is an enclosed area, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theater, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the...

 in downtown Rockford

Rockford, Illinois

Rockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...

, Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. It is currently home to the AHL

American Hockey League

The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...

's Rockford IceHogs

Rockford IceHogs

This article is about the former UHL franchise. For the current American Hockey League franchise, see Rockford IceHogs.The Rockford IceHogs were a professional ice hockey team in Rockford, Illinois USA. They were a member of the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2007. The IceHogs played their home...

 hockey team. The arena formerly served as the home of several defunct minor league sports teams, including the Rockford Lightning

Rockford Lightning

The Rockford Lightning were a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association. They were based in Rockford, Illinois. The Lightning were the oldest team in the CBA, originally existing as the Lancaster Red Roses from Lancaster, Pennsylvania...

 basketball team, the Rock River Raptors

Rock River Raptors

This page is for the Continental Indoor Football League team, for the National Premier Soccer League team also based in Rockford, see Rockford Raptors....

 indoor football team, and the Rockford Rampage

Rockford Rampage

The Rockford Rampage were an American indoor soccer team based in Rockford, Illinois, USA. Founded in 2005, the team plays in the Major Indoor Soccer League.The team played its home games at Rockford MetroCentre. The team colors are black and green...

 indoor soccer

Indoor soccer

Indoor soccer or arena soccer, or six-a-side football in the United Kingdom, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in an indoor arena such as a turf-covered hockey arena or skating rink. The most important difference in play is that the indoor field is surrounded by a wall...

 team.

The BMO Harris Bank Center also secured a spot in history when it hosted the first Arena Football League test game in 1986 between the Chicago Politicians

Chicago Politicians

The Chicago Politicians was a team formed in 1986 by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster to play an initial "test game" in Rockford, Illinois at the MetroCentre. They were defeated by the Rockford Metros, 30-18...

 and the Rockford Metros

Rockford Metros

The Rockford Metros was an Arena football team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster for the purposes of playing a "test game" in Rockford, Illinois in the spring of 1986 at the MetroCentre. The team was named after the MetroCentre itself. Players were taken from different semi-pro...

. WWE

World Wrestling Entertainment

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...

 holds one event yearly in the BMO Harris Bank Center. Due to its outdoor appearance it is often referred to as the "Big Orange Box", although Icehogs officials refer to the arena as "the Barnyard".

History

Certainly the most significant event in BMO Harris Bank Center history occurred in the inaugural year, when The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

 made an appearance on their 1981 North American Tour

Rolling Stones American Tour 1981

The Rolling Stones' American Tour 1981 was a concert tour of stadiums and arenas in the United States to promote the album Tattoo You. It was the largest grossing tour of 1981 with $50 million in ticket sales...

 on October 1, 1981. The concert was added to the tour in response to a radio station petition drive. The actual petitions were cut up and used to hold a lottery for the right to buy tickets. Each person drawn could purchase two of the $15.00 tickets.

The facility hosted the 1984 and 1986 Mid-American Conference

Mid-American Conference

The Mid-American Conference is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members...

 men's basketball tournaments as well as numerous IHSA

Illinois High School Association

The Illinois High School Association is one of 521 state high school associations in the United States, designed to regulate competition in most interscholastic sports and some interscholastic activities at the high school level. It is a charter member of the National Federation of State High...

 basketball sectional and super-sectional tournaments. In addition to athletic events, it hosts concerts, conventions, and local high school graduations.

Arena information

The BMO Harris Bank Center hosts major concerts, sport events, and other large scale events. The complex houses press boxes, a lounge, and suites to watch sport events in style, and a 10,000 seat multi-purpose arena.

Naming rights

On August 11, 2011 it was announced that BMO Harris Bank had reached a long term agreement with the Rockford IceHogs for the naming rights of the venue. It was effectively re-named the BMO Harris Bank Center.

Renovation

In 2006, The city of Rockford, along with Winnebago County

Winnebago County, Illinois

Winnebago County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 295,266, which is an increase of 6.1% from 278,418 in 2000...

, announced plans to issue 23 million dollars in bonds to fund a massive renovation of the Arena. The renovation of the then-MetroCentre began in the summer of 2007. Projects already completed include a state-of-the-art video scoreboard, Club Boxes, Club Lounge, 200-person Group Terrace additional bathrooms, and new concession stands and food courts. Other amenities to be completed in 2008 include an exterior façade update, new box office and main entrance, 11 Luxury Corporate Suites, and a retail center. Key to the plan was an agreement with the Chicago Blackhawks

Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...

 to put an American Hockey League

American Hockey League

The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...

(AHL) team in Rockford for the next 10 years. This team acts as the Blackhawks' farm team. The MetroCentre authority purchased an AHL franchise, and bought the rights to name it the "IceHogs."