Cuneta Astrodome
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| Location | Roxas Boulevard, Pasay, Philippines |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 14°32′41″N 120°59′31″E / 14.54472°N 120.99194°ECoordinates: 14°32′41″N 120°59′31″E / 14.54472°N 120.99194°E |
| Owner | Pasay City Government |
| Operator | Pasay City Government |
| Capacity | 12,000 |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | April 1991 |
| Opened | January 1993 |
| Construction cost | ₱140 million |
| Tenants | |
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PBA (1993–1999; 2000–present) UAAP (1994–1999, 2004, 2006,-present) Philippine Super Liga (2014–present) | |
Cuneta Astrodome is an indoor arena located in Pasay, Philippines. It is better known as the home of the Philippine Basketball Association from 1993, when it left the PhilSports Arena, then known as the ULTRA, until 1998. It also host to other basketball leagues, political, evangelical gatherings and churches anniversaries. It is also the permanent home of the Philippine Super Liga since 2014.
The arena is named after Enrique Cuneta, a prominent Pasay city official during the Spanish colonial period.[1]
Despite its name, the Cuneta Astrodome is not a dome-shaped indoor arena, since its exterior is rectangular in shape.
Basketball
Philippine Basketball Association
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Built in 1993, the arena became the PBA's home after the league signed a five-year deal with the Pasay City government, which includes the league's office within the Astrodome's vicinity.[1] The league also manages maintenance and marketing of the Astrodome.[2] During the first two years, the league played all of its games (except those played in provinces) exclusively at the Astrodome before limiting its schedule to Tuesday and Sunday games, as the league played its Friday games at the Araneta Coliseum in 1995.
In 1999, after the agreement expired, the league transferred its offices and most of its games to the PhilSports Arena, the PBA's home from 1985 to 1992. Although the league hosted a few games at the said venue, it was not used for the duration of the 2000 season. Since 2001, the league has host a decent amount of games at the Astrodome, including several recent PBA championship series games.
It has hosted more than 30 PBA championship series, most recently the Game 2 of the 2011 PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals.
Currently, it is one of the alternate venues of the league, together with the PhilSports Arena in Pasig if either the Smart Araneta Coliseum and the Mall of Asia Arena are not available.
Metropolitan Basketball Association
The Metropolitan Basketball Association held two games at the Astrodome during the 1999 season. The first is between San Juan Knights and the Nueva Ecija Patriots, the other is between Pasig-Rizal Pirates and the Davao Eagles.
Amateur/Collegiate Leagues
Aside from hosting PBA games, it also held several collegiate leagues such as the UAAP, NCAA, WNCAA and the UCAA. The UAAP held the men's senior basketball championships in 1994 and 1999. The NCAA hosted some championship matchups in the mid-1990s with the most recent in 2003, when Letran defeated San Sebastian in the third and final game of the series, the only time it was held at the venue during the series.
In 2005 and 2008, the NCAA held majority of its games at the Astrodome while the UAAP played a series of games in the 2004 and 2007 seasons.
It also hosted the Philippine Basketball League during the mid-1990s and during the 2005 PBL Unity Cup Finals between the champion Welcoat Paintmasters and the Montana Jewels.
Other events
Sharon Cuneta, the daughter of then Pasay City mayor Pablo Cuneta held the first concert at the Astrodome on January 1993, one month before the PBA held its opening ceremonies.
Outside of sports, it also hosted several evangelical and political gatherings, the most recent by a political campaign for late-actor and Presidential candidate, Fernando Poe Jr. in 2004 and other functions by the opposition party.
It is also a usual gathering for evangelical events. Some religious organizations who have hosted the event are the Jesus is our Shield Worldwide Ministries of Apostle Renato D. Carillo, Doulos for Christ World Harvest, Jesus Miracle Crusade, Eli Soriano's Ang Dating Daan and the frequent user of the astrodome is the JESUS CHRIST To God Be The Glory Church International who held their services every Sunday and some major event such as concert, anniversary among others.
The biggest event hosted by far was in 1994, when the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) held a live event at the said venue featuring a WWE World Championship match between the then-champion Bret Hart and his brother, challenger Owen Hart.
The Cranberries also held their "To the Faithful Departed" tour in the Cuneta Astrodome in 1996.
On July 19, 1997 Rage Against The Machine performed live in Cuneta Astrodome as part of their Evil Empire Tour Asian leg. All proceeds after the Concert were given for the benefit of Pasay City General Hospital.
Sharon Cuneta's 1993 Concert was also held at the Astrodome and was dubbed as "Cuneta sa Cuneta".
Taekwondo competitions of the 2005 Southeast Asian Games were hosted in the venue.
The grand finals of Talentadong Pinoy was also held here on March 6, 2010, March 13, 2011 and in August 18, 2013.
Tau Gamma Phi also held its 39th and 42nd Founding Anniversary last October 4, 2007 and October 4, 2010.
Renovation
In 2006, the Astrodome has been refurbished with new seats and a new floor for basketball games as the venue has shown a tremendous sign of deterioration over the past few years. It is the biggest renovation occurred at the Astrodome as past events resulted in minor refurbishment of the stadium.
The renovated Astrodome debuted on June 30, 2006 during Game Six of the 2006 PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series and the Philippines-Lebanon goodwill series in August the same year.
See also
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cuneta Astrodome. |
References
- 1 2 PBA signs memo of transfer to Pasay stadium, Manila Standard, October 31, 1992
- ↑ Cuneta-PBA talks on Pasay transfer slated, Rocky Nazareno, Manila Standard, May 21, 1992