Colloquially known as "The House That Rupp Built," Memorial Coliseum at 201 Avenue of Champions on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington was completed in 1950 at a cost of approximately $4 million as a memorial to the more than 9,000 Kentuckians who died in World War II. The formal dedication took place on May 30, 1950, with University President Herman L. Donovan describing the coliseum as "a sacred place dedicated to the memory of those who exchanged their youth for an ideal." For 25 years the arena housed the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team, which won two national championships and 16 Southeastern Conference titles under legendary coaches Adolph Rupp and Joe B. Hall while playing in the facility. The Wildcats moved downtown to the 23,000-seat Rupp Arena in 1976, and the coliseum became the exclusive home of UK women's basketball, volleyball, gymnastics, and later the STUNT team. Engineering professor John Sherman Horine hand-lettered 9,310 names of Kentucky's war dead onto glass-enclosed panels in the lobby. The original capacity of 12,000 was reduced to 8,500 during a $1 million renovation in 1990 that added a weight-training facility, new offices, and players' lounges. In 2023, UK announced the most significant investment in women's sports facilities in school history: an $82 million renovation that displaced all four teams for the 2023-24 season. The project was completed in August 2024, further reducing capacity to the current 6,250 while adding air conditioning, new seating, upgraded video and sound systems, expanded locker rooms, and modernized athletic training spaces. The grand re-opening was celebrated on April 26, 2025, coinciding with the 75th anniversary of the building's original opening. New stone monuments inscribed with the names of Kentucky's war dead were installed in a plaza facing Euclid Avenue, and additional displays now honor Kentuckians who died in the Korean War, Vietnam War, and subsequent conflicts. The renovated arena immediately proved its worth: the volleyball team won the SEC championship and hosted NCAA tournament rounds, and the gymnastics squad reached the NCAA Regional.

Type: Stadium / Arena

Address: 201 Avenue of Champions, Lexington, KY, United States, 40506

Website: https://ukathletics.com/facilities/memorial-coliseum/

Capacity: 6250

Opening Date: 30/05/1950