Yesterday, we shared little-known facts about the beginnings of the country’s so-called mecca of sports and entertainment, the Araneta Coliseum.
Today, we’ve got more interesting details like the highest-grossing events at the Big Dome since 2001 and what makes the facility a state-of-the-art venue.
Here’s the final instalment on our treat for Big Dome trivia buffs:
• The PBA has held over 1,000 games at the Araneta Coliseum since its inception in 1975. For the most part, only when the Cubao hoophouse is booked for another event does the PBA look for an alternate venue.
PBA media affairs chief and assistant to the commissioner Willie Marcial estimates the pro league plays about 120 to 130 games a season with roughly 70 percent at the Big Dome.
• The Araneta Coliseum was the main stadium for the World Basketball Championships in 1978 and the site of the Philippines’ victory over China in the finals of the Asian Youth Basketball Championships in 1982.
As host, the Philippines was automatically seeded in the World Championships and finished eighth. The national team hasn’t since qualified to play in the quadrennial competition. Hall of Famers who played in the 1978 tournament included Brazil’s Oscar Schmidt, Italy’s Dino Meneghin and Yugoslavia’s Kresimir Cosic.
• The Washington Bullets (now Wizards) played a PBA selection in an exhibition game at the Araneta Coliseum in 1979. Heading the Bullets team were Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld and Kevin Porter.
Other NBA stars who actually played at the Big Dome in various exhibitions were Shaquille O’Neal, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dennis Rodman, Alex English, Darryl Dawkins, Phil Jackson, Rick Barry, Tiny Archibald and Walt Frazier.
• The Big Dome boasts of a state-of-the-art video scoreboard that can project instant game replays, on-stage action and advertisements via four fine-resolution LED screens that can be viewed from all sides of the building.
• Cockfighting is another sport that the Araneta Coliseum has embraced with a passion. It has now hosted about 30 international and 180 local derbies. The World Slasher Cup International Derby is the Big Dome’s most prestigious cockfighting event.
• Since 1962, over 50 local beauty pageants have taken place at the Araneta Coliseum, including the Binibining Pilipinas contests that crowned the country’s world queens Gloria Diaz, Aurora Pijuan, Margie Moran and Melanie Marquez. Over seven international pageants were also held, including the Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Asia Pacific contests.
• Pope John Paul II celebrated a Holy Mass at the Araneta Coliseum during his historic visit to the Philippines in 1991.
• The Araneta Coliseum has withstood all national calamities and the strongest earthquakes that hit the country, including the 7.8 Richter Scale tremor on Aug. 24, 1970.
• The Big Dome has hosted a slew of foreign artists in concert like Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, the Everly Brothers, Matt Monro, Sergio Mendes, Jose Feliciano, Menudo, Burt Bacharach, Andy Williams, Air Supply, Julio Iglesia, Bon Jovi, Rod Stewart, Santana, Alanis Morisette, Pat Boone, Neil Sedaka, Dave Clark Five, the Searchers,
the Zombies, Herman’s Hermits, Freddie and the Dreamers, Peter and Gordon, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, America, Angela Bofill, Earl Klugh, Paul Anka, Ricky Nelson, Ann Margret, Blood Sweat and Tears, the Pussycat Dolls, Westlife, Brian McKnight, Backstreet Boys, Robin Gibb, Black Eyed Peas, Mariah Carey, Robert Palmer, Michael Buble, Cliff Richard, Petula Clark and the Corrs.
Local performers have also been featured at the Big Dome. The list reads like a who’s who and includes Sharon Cuneta, Nora Aunor, Gary Valenciano, Martin Nievera, April Boy Regino, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Side A, South Border, Freddie Aguilar and Kuh Ledesma.
• Family shows like the Holiday On Ice, Moscow Circus, Walt Disney’s World On Ice, Follies International, Chipperfields London Circus, Circus Europa, the Great Japanese Circus and China’s Liaoning Acrobatic Wonders have made it to the mecca.
• Since 2001, the highest-grossing event in the Big Dome was the Manny Pacquiao-Oscar Larios fight with sales of P96.2 million two years ago. Next was Maroon 5 with P38.9 million last March. Third was World Wrestling Entertainment’s Raw Live Tour in 2006 with P26.5 million and fourth was a repeat of the show the next day with P25.5 million. WWE Smackdown brought in P24.9 million, also in 2006 and P19.8 million the next day.
Westlife drew an attendance of 17,887 with ticket sales of P18.5 million in 2001. Cliff Richard had an audience of only 5,647 but the gate registered P17.2 million.
The PBA and the UAAP games have attracted crowds of over 21,000.
With the Araneta Center blossoming into a major metro destination, expect more exciting, top-rate sports and entertainment shows at the Big Dome.