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 The arena during the2016 Australian Open | |
 Interactive map of John Cain Arena | |
| Former names | Melbourne Multi Purpose Venue(planning/construction) (2006) Vodafone Arena(2000–2008) Hisense Arena(2008–2018) Melbourne Arena(2018–2020) |
|---|---|
| Address | 35 Olympic Blvd MelbourneVIC 3004 Australia |
| Location | Melbourne Park |
| Coordinates | 37°49′22″S144°58′54″E / 37.82278°S 144.98167°E /-37.82278; 144.98167 |
| Owner | Government of Victoria |
| Operator | Melbourne and Olympic Park Trust |
| Capacity | 10,300[2] |
| Surface | GreenSet(tennis) Hardwood(basketball) (netball) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1999 |
| Opened | 27 July 2000 |
| Construction cost | A$65 million[1] |
| Architect | Peddle Thorp |
| General contractor | Theiss Construction |
| Tenants | |
| Basketball Melbourne United (NBL) 2000–2002, 2012–present South East Melbourne Phoenix (NBL) 2019–present South Dragons (NBL) 2006–2009 Victoria Giants (NBL) 2000–2004 Netball Melbourne Vixens (ANZ/SSN) 2008–present Melbourne Mavericks (SSN) 2024–present Collingwood Magpies (SSN) 2017–2023 Tennis Australian Open (Tennis) 2001–present | |
| Website | |
| Venue Website | |
John Cain Arena is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena located withinMelbourne Park inMelbourne,Victoria, Australia. It is the second-largest venue and show court for theAustralian Open, the firstGrand Slam professionaltennis tournament held each calendar year. The arena also hosts various other sporting and entertainment events throughout the year.
The arena has sometimes been dubbed "The People's Court" during Australian Open matches, owing to its accessibility for Australian Open patrons with a ground pass (i.e. the cheapest form of ticketing available) and the close proximity of spectators to the players,[3][4] with the arena developing a reputation for being an incredibly passionate venue with a terrific atmosphere, particularly when Australians are playing on the court.[5][6][7]
Construction commenced in the late 1990s, and was completed in 2000. The arena features a cycling track, which is covered over with seating for court events. The tennis court is aGreenSet surface (between 2008 and 2019 the surface wasPlexicushion) and theroof is retractable, making it one of the few venues where tennis can be played during rain.[1]
The venue is able to hold a maximum spectator capacity of 11,000 for events such as music concerts where general floor seating or standing room is available. Forbasketball,netball andtennis the capacity is 10,500. When the velodrome is in use the northern and southern banks of seats, which cover the turns of the velodrome, are raised to reveal the track while the floor seating is removed leaving a reduced capacity of 4,500.[1]
Following the renovation of theMargaret Court Arena as part of aA$363 million upgrade toMelbourne Park in time for the 2015 Australian Open, which included a retractable roof and an increase in capacity from 6,000 to 7,500, bothMelbourne United (formerly the Melbourne Tigers) and the Melbourne Vixens announced their intentions to move from the arena to the smaller capacity Margaret Court Arena (MCA) from 2015. However, Melbourne United abandoned their move to MCA after the2015–16 NBL season and continue to play their games at John Cain Arena, while the Vixens will continue to split their games between John Cain and Margaret Court Arenas, with John Cain used for games expected to attract a larger crowd.
During construction, the project was referred to as theMelbourne Park Multi-Purpose Venue.[1] When it opened in 2000, a sponsor was immediately assigned naming rights and it became known as theVodafone Arena.[1] This arrangement lasted for eight years. On 12 May 2008, it was announced that its name would change toHisense Arena in a multimillion-dollar deal that was originally supposed to last six years. Meanwhile, temporarily throughout the2006 Commonwealth Games, the Hisense Arena reverted to being called "Multi Purpose Venue" for the duration of the sporting event. In 2014 the naming contract with the multinational Hisense was extended for a further three years.[8] Despite the contract ending at the conclusion of 2017, Hisense Arena remained the name of the venue for several more months, effectively for free.[9]
In August 2018,Tennis Australia announced it had bought the naming rights and had elected to call itMelbourne Arena, saying it preferred a non-commercial title "iconic with the city".[10] The non-corporate name was to be in effect for five years, though theVictorian Government and Tennis Australia did not rule out extending the arena's name beyond that period.[10]
On 3 February 2020, Victorian PremierDaniel Andrews announced that the arena would be renamed "John Cain Arena" in honour ofJohn Cain Jr., the late State Premier of Victoria, who is regarded as a critical figure in keeping theAustralian Open in Melbourne in the mid-1980s.[11] The new name came into effect in December 2020.[12]
Every year, the venue hosts many matches as part of theAustralian Open tennis tournament. It has usually only been used for day matches in the first 10 days of the tournament. In 2012 the venue began hosting night matches during the first week of the tournament, at the same time as matches being played on the adjacentRod Laver Arena. The first Australian Open match played at the venue was on 15 January 2001 and lasted less than ten minutes, whenMonica Seles advanced to the second round after Brie Rippner was felled with injury in the second game of the match. The first match completed on the court wasTim Henman's first round win overHicham Arazi.
John Cain Arena is the main home court ofNational Basketball League (NBL) teamsMelbourne United andSouth East Melbourne Phoenix. Formerly, theVictoria Titans andSouth Dragons used it as their home, until high rental prices forced the teams to find other venues. Until this move the venue was largely devoid of sporting events outside of the two weeks of theAustralian Open tournament held each January. The Dragons, founded in 2006 until they withdrew from the competition after winning the championship in 2009, played three seasons at the arena.[13][14] For the2012–13 NBL season, the Tigers (now renamedMelbourne United) returned to the venue, and played 7 of their 13 home games at the arena. They later shifted all home matches to the venue. The Phoenix, who made their debut in the2019–20 NBL season, share their home with John Cain Arena and theState Basketball Centre inWantirna South.[15]
The largest basketball crowd was on 4 December 2016 during the2016–17 NBL season when 10,300 fans saw Melbourne United defeat theNew Zealand Breakers 98–74. This broke the previous basketball attendance record of 9,308 set in 2008 in a local derby game between the South Dragons and Melbourne Tigers.[16][17]
The venue co-hosted the2007 FIBA Oceania Championship where theAustralian national basketball team won the gold medal.
John Cain Arena has also hosted severalHarlem Globetrotters Exhibition Games during their tours of Australia.
On 4 February 2023, John Cain Arena hosted aWNBL game between theSouthside Flyers and theSydney Flames following increased interest in the match due to the participation ofHall of Fame playerLauren Jackson.[18] The game set a WNBL record of 7,681 spectators.[19]
Netball is played regularly at the venue. It is the home court of theMelbourne Vixens andMelbourne Mavericks in theSuncorp Super Netball competition. TheMelbourne Phoenix andMelbourne Kestrels also played games at the arena in theCommonwealth Bank Trophy before merging to form the Vixens. The Vixens also used it for home games in theANZ Championship.
TheAustralian Diamonds sometime play home international fixtures at the venue. The venue also hosted the2016,2017 and2018Fast5 Netball World Series.
The largest netball attendance at the arena was on 20 November 2004 when 10,300 saw the Diamonds defeatNew Zealand 53 to 51.[20]
During the2006 Commonwealth Games the stadium was used for basketball, track cycling and other sports. Its name was changed to Multi-Purpose Venue with all Vodafone-related signage covered over with black shrouds becauseTelstra, a competitor of Vodafone, was a major sponsor of the games.
In2004 and2012, theUCI Track Cycling World Championships were held at the venue. Other events were UCI World Cup events and Australian Madison Championships.
On 14 and 15 June 2013, the venue played host to anice hockey exhibition series between teams representing the United States and Canada.[21]
On 28 December 2024, one day before the 2024 Pro Kabaddi League Final, the Pro Kabaddi League hosted thePro Kabaddi League: Melbourne Raid at the arena. The Event featured two Kabaddi All Star Exhibition matches.[22]
The arena hosts several musical and entertainment events each year, in concert with other venues in the precinct. On 26 February 2007, Irish boy bandWestlife held a concert forThe Love Tour supporting their LPThe Love Album. On 18 September 2018, Taiwanese vocal pop bandMayday held a concert forLife Tour supporting their albumHistory of Tomorrow. From 2011 to 2013 the venue hosted the Melbourne judges' audition stages of theSeven Network singer search programThe X Factor. Its also been the home to the Victorian State Schools Spectacular since 2008.
In November 2022, a stampede occurred outside the venue prior to a concert for American singerSteve Lacy, with poor organization by stadium management being blamed for it. The concert was originally fixtured to be held at TheForum Theatre in Melbourne's central business district, but was upgraded due to high demand.[23][24]
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| Preceded by | UCI Track Cycling World Championships Venue 2004 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | UCI Track Cycling World Championships Venue 2012 | Succeeded by |
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