Family Arena facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Family Arena

Family Arena 2013
Location	2002 Arena Parkway St. Charles, Missouri 63303
Owner	St. Charles County Public Arena Authority
Operator	St. Charles County Public Arena Authority
Capacity	Hockey: 9,643 Football: 9,755 Basketball: 10,467 Half-house concerts: 6,339 End-stage concerts: up to 11,522
Field size	Arena floor: 17,900 square feet (1,660 m2) Upper concourse area: 22,000 square feet (2,000 m2)
Surface	Multi-surface
Construction
Broke ground	April 5, 1998
Opened	October 3, 1999
Construction cost	$27 million ($47.4 million in 2022 dollars )
Architect	Hastings & Chivetta Architects
General contractor	Alberici Constructors, Inc.
Tenants
Missouri River Otters (UHL) (1999–2006) St. Louis Swarm (IBL) (1999–2001) RiverCity Rage (NIFL/UIF/IFL) (2005; 2007–2009) St. Louis Steamers (WISL/MISL II) (2000–2001; 2003–2004) St. Charles Chill (CHL) (2013–2014) St. Louis Ambush (MASL) (2013–present) River City Raiders (AIF/APF) (2016–2017) St. Louis Vipers (NRHL) (2020–)

The Family Arena is a large building in St. Charles, Missouri. It was built in 1999 and can be used for many different events. It's a great place for sports, concerts, and big shows.

The arena can hold different numbers of people depending on the event. For hockey games, it seats 9,643 fans. For football, it holds 9,755 people. Basketball games can have 10,467 spectators. For concerts, it can seat up to 11,522 people.

Besides sports and concerts, the Family Arena is also used for trade shows. These shows use a lot of space, including the main floor and the areas around it.

Illinois State vs Creighton in the 2013 MVC Women's Basketball Tournament

The Family Arena ice hockey rink set up for the St. Charles Chill

Today, the Family Arena is the home of the St. Louis Ambush. This team plays in the Major Arena Soccer League.

In the past, the arena hosted big company events. It was also the main place in St. Louis for popular shows. These included the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus and Disney on Ice. These shows later moved to other venues in the area.

Basketball Tournaments

From 2008 to 2015, the Family Arena was a key spot for college basketball. It hosted the Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Tournament. This brought many exciting games to the arena each year.

Special Events and Concerts

The Family Arena has been a place for many different kinds of events. It has hosted large Bible conventions for Jehovah's Witnesses. The popular Christian rock band MercyMe also performed here every year from 2007 to 2013.

Professional Wrestling Shows

If you like wrestling, you might know the Family Arena. It has hosted nationally televised professional wrestling events. These include Extreme Championship Wrestling's Wrestlepalooza in 2000.

It also hosted Impact Wrestling's "Lockdown" pay-per-view events. These big shows happened in 2007 and again in 2010. Ring of Honor also held its "Gateway to Honor" event here in 2020.

Graduation Ceremonies

The arena is a popular spot for graduation ceremonies. Many local colleges hold their commencement events here. These include Lindenwood University, Missouri Baptist University, and Maryville University. Several area high schools also use the arena for their graduations.

NCAA Women's Ice Hockey

In 2017, the Family Arena hosted a very important ice hockey event. It was the "Frozen Four" for the NCAA National Collegiate Women's Ice Hockey Tournament. This is like the championship for college women's hockey.

The final games were played on March 17 and 19, 2017. Lindenwood University helped host the event. The championship game was shown live on TV for the first time in years. The [[{{{school}}}|Clarkson]] team won the tournament. They beat Wisconsin 3-0, earning their second national title.

Past Sports Teams

The Family Arena has been home to many sports teams over the years. It hosted the St. Louis Swarm basketball team. Ice hockey teams like the Missouri River Otters and St. Charles Chill also played here.

Indoor football teams, the RiverCity Rage and River City Raiders, called it home too. The St. Louis Steamers indoor soccer team also played their games at the Family Arena.