RAC Arena celebrates 10 years
Perth’s premier indoor sports and entertainment venue, RAC Arena, turns 10 this month with seven major events and a month-long celebration for fans with the ‘Memory Lane’ exhibition.
Since its opening in November 2012, RAC Arena has entertained more than 6 million patrons, including more than 1.8 million spectators for sports events.
The 14,000-capacity indoor arena, featuring a retractable roof, was built adjacent to the old Perth Entertainment Centre which closed in 2002 and was demolished in 2011-12.
Since Sir Elton John performed the inaugural event at the venue in November 2012, RAC Arena has welcomed internationally renowned artists and the world's best sports stars.
Owned by VenuesWest on behalf of the Western Australian Government and managed by ASM Global, 724 events have been staged at RAC Arena in its first 10 years, including 228 concerts, 168 shows and 328 sports events.
The highest crowd at the venue for a sports event is 13,908 for this year’s Super Netball Grand Final between the West Coast Fever and Melbourne Vixens. 13,842 attended the Fed Cup Tennis Final between Australia and France in 2019, while the biggest Perth Wildcats crowd is 13,615 against the JackJumpers in 2021.
Some of the world's biggest artists have performed at RAC Arena, including Ed Sheeran, Bruce Springsteen, Kiss, Neil Diamond, Pink, Robbie Williams, Beyonce, Kylie Minogue, Sir Elton John, Michael Buble, The Rolling Stones, Prince, Phil Collins, Hugh Jackman, Billie Eilish, Midnight Oil and The Wiggles.
The annual Hopman Cup saw some of the best tennis players compete for their country including Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal played in the ATP Cup, the Australian Diamonds beat New Zealand to bring home the Constellation Cup, while the Perth Wildcats have won five championships since calling 'The Jungle' home and West Coast Fever claimed their inaugural Suncorp Super Netball League premiership earlier this year.
As of this year, RAC Arena is also proudly the new home of Telethon and the Family Fun Festival.
RAC Arena has received worldwide recognition in prestigious industry awards, including continually ranking highly in Pollstar and Billboard charts for a venue of its size.
WA Sport and Recreation Minister David Templeman said, “RAC Arena is a true-blue Western Australian icon, putting Perth firmly on the map as a world class sport and entertainment destination.
“Live events create lasting memories, and RAC Arena has created countless magical experiences for the people of Western Australia.
“RAC Arena is renowned globally as a world class venue for its size and attracts thousands of interstate and international visitors every year.”
The Perth Wildcats will play four matches at RAC Arena over the next month, before tennis returns with the newly-named United Cup (formerly the ATP Cup) held between December 29 and January 4, with tickets now on sale.
VIEW UPCOMING RAC ARENA EVENTS >
A month-long celebration for fans is underway with 'Memory Lane', a curated exhibition of 20 iconic event photos open until the end of the year and special birthday treats for the first 100 fans through the door at each event during November.
