Here on the corner of Emporia and Waterman, this isn’t just another stadium; it’s a 15,004-seat colossus and the second largest indoor arena in Kansas. Owned by Sedgwick County, Intrust Bank Arena replaced the old Kansas Coliseum, which, after loyally serving Wichita since 1977, finally hung up its hard hat in 2010. It took a real “field goal” to build this place-a local vote, a 1% sales tax, and a 25-year naming-rights deal with the homegrown Intrust Bank. The final price tag? A cool $183 million. I’d say that beats my piggy bank by a few dollars!
But the investment paid off. The arena sports 22 luxury suites, 2 party suites, and over 300 premium seats. There’s not a bad seat in the house-as long as you don’t mind being up close and personal with 6-foot-tall Thunder hockey players hurtling across the ice. Not a fan of pucks? Don’t worry-basketball, football, wrestling, and even bull riding have all taken the spotlight here. In fact, Wichita State’s Shockers play their biggest games here when their regular Charles Koch Arena just isn’t big enough. It’s basically where local teams go when they want their crowds to roar even louder.
And let’s not forget history in the making-Intrust has hosted NCAA women’s and men’s basketball games, including the biggest national tournaments in 2011, 2018, 2022, and coming up again in 2025. It even survived the 2021 pandemic shakeup, when the entire NCAA tournament moved to Indiana. They say Kansas weather changes fast, but in this arena, it’s the fan excitement that’ll give you whiplash.
Concerts are another story altogether. Metallica smashed the all-time attendance record here in 2019, squeezing in 15,690 headbangers-who knew Wichita could shake that hard? One night, it’s the thundering echo of a UFC fight, the next, wrestling or a dazzling NBA pre-season matchup. In 2019, the Ultimate Fighting Championship held their first Kansas event ever right here. If arenas could get performance anxiety, this one would have every right!
But none of this would be possible without the people of Wichita. After all, winning “Best Arena” and “Best Locker Rooms” and ranking 22nd in the U.S. for ticket sales in its first year isn’t easy. Intrust Bank Arena stands as a true gathering place for excitement, drama, and community pride-a landmark mixing the energy of the present with echoes from the past. So, ready to march on to the next stop, or should we see how long it takes you to run a lap around the arena? (Spoiler: Metallica fans do it faster!)
