About Global Credit Union Arena
GCU’s 7,000-seat Arena opened on Sept. 1, 2011, just 15 months after university officials broke ground on the project. The nearly 135,000-square-foot sports and entertainment venue hosts GCU athletic, university and community events and national concert tours.
Moreover, it serves as the focal point of GCU’s $1.2 billion campus expansion.1 Notable and exciting features include large windows providing natural light, ceiling beams signed by GCU employees and students, a vault of Bibles buried at center court and an outdoor balcony with picturesque views of the campus. As guests can see by viewing the Global Credit Union Arena map, every seat in the house is a good one, with only 42 steps from the event level to the concourse level.
Expanded Global Credit Union Arena
In August 2014, GCU debuted our newly expanded multi-purpose Arena, which plays host to university athletics and GCU concerts, along with community events and national concert tours. The nearly 135,000-square-foot Arena initially opened in September 2011 as a 5,000-seat venue – the centerpiece of GCU’s $1.2 billion campus expansion.1 GCU marked the reopening of the Arena with 2,000 additional seats, a portable basketball floor and other features that make it one of the top venues of its kind among universities nationwide.
Features
The Arena’s high-definition video boards rival those in the best professional sports arenas. A 57-foot, 3,000-lb. trolley beam can move the video board with a touch of a finger. The screen moves along a track with a 2.5-ton portable motor; the process takes approximately three minutes.
The portable basketball floor comprises 225 pieces. Each piece is four feet by eight feet and weighs 125 pounds each. It requires 10 staff members and two forklifts to install the floor in a four hour time frame.
By the Numbers
- Square feet: Nearly 135,000
- Seats: 7,000
- Toilets: 81 in 15 restrooms
- Curtains: Five 50’ x 27’ (each)
- Concessions: Five
- Locker rooms: Four
- Video boards:
- One 15′ × 35′ high-definition video board
- Two 10′ × 18″ high-definition video boards
- One 3’4″ × 525′ high-resolution digital ribbon board
- One 6.5′ × 32′ high-definition lobby video board
About GCU
Grand Canyon University was founded in 1949 and is Arizona’s premier private Christian university. GCU is regionally accredited and emphasizes individual attention for both traditional undergraduate students and the working professional. GCU offers traditional programs on its growing campus and online bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. The university’s curriculum fuses academic and clinical rigor with Christian values to prepare students to be skilled, caring professionals.
¹ Included investment in academic infrastructure and technology to benefit GCU students.
