Bell Centre
Bell Centre, formerly known as Molson Centre, is a multi-purpose arena located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Opened on March 16, 1996, it is the home arena of the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League, replacing Montreal Forum and it is the largest indoor arena in Canada. It is owned by the Molson family via the team's ownership group Groupe CH, and managed via Groupe CH subsidiary Evenko.
With a seating capacity of 20,962 in its hockey configuration, Bell Centre is the second largest ice hockey arena in the world after the SKA Arena in St. Petersburg, Russia. Alongside hockey, Bell Centre has hosted major concerts, and occasional mixed martial arts and professional wrestling events. Since it opened in 1996, it has consistently been listed as one of the world's busiest arenas, usually receiving the highest attendance of any arena in Canada. In 2012, it was the fifth-busiest arena in the world based on ticket sales for non-sporting events.
History
Construction began on the site on June 22, 1993, almost two weeks after the Canadiens defeated the Los Angeles Kings at the Forum for their 24th and most recent Stanley Cup. When the arena officially opened in 1996, its name initially reflected Molson, Inc., a brewing company which was owner of the Canadiens at the time. Molson elected not to keep the naming rights when they sold the team and the name was officially changed on September 1, 2002, after Bell Canada acquired the naming rights.On October 14, 2015, it was announced that Bell Centre would undergo renovations, including the replacement of all the seats, renovated hallways and concessions, new restaurants, public Wi-Fi, and the planned conversion of Avenue des Canadiens-de-Montréal into a pedestrian-only street. The renovations, which were not expected to interfere with normal operations, have a budget of $100 million.
Location
Bell Centre is located in downtown Montreal in the borough of Ville-Marie, near the corner of Canadiens-de-Montréal Avenue and de la Montagne Street. The Lucien L'Allier commuter rail terminal, to which it is connected, is next door on that corner. In addition, it is located across the street from the 1250 René-Lévesque skyscraper. It is easily accessible by public transportation, as it is linked to both Lucien-L'Allier and Bonaventure Metro stations. It is also connected to the underground city and Central Station.Arena information
The building covers an area of . It has a seating capacity of 20,962, making it the second largest hockey arena in the world. It also holds six restaurants.Capacities of the arena from highest to lowest are:
- Basketball: 22,114
- Hockey: 20,962
- Concerts: 15,000-19,200
- Amphitheatre: 10,000–14,000
- Theatre: 5,000–9,000
It is one of only two NHL arenas that uses an old-style siren to mark the end of periods instead of a horn; the other being the TD Garden in Boston. The sirens were inherited from the arenas' predecessor facilities, coming from the disused Montreal Forum and the Boston Garden respectively.
Seating
Unlike most North American arenas, which have generally been designed by Populous and its predecessors, the Bell Centre was designed by a local consortium, and has many unique design features. The grandstands are sloped steeply to improve sight lines. Washrooms on the 100 level are centralized on a specific lower level located at each end.Bell Centre is arranged in a three-tier layout: The lower 100 section, commonly referred to as "the reds" since these seats are coloured red; the 200 section situated between the two levels of private and corporate boxes, known as "Club Desjardins", and the upper 300 section. The ends of the 300 section are further divided into two more groups. At the end where the Canadiens shoot towards twice is the Ford Zone, featuring section cheerleaders and flashing lights. At the opposite end is the Family Zone, which features child-specific ticket prices and limited alcohol.
Seats behind the press gondola, in Sections 318, 319, and 320, feature their own scoreboards on the back of the gondola due to the normal scoreboard being blocked.
Interior
After some early complaints of a generic feel, especially compared to the Forum, the Canadiens started to incrementally decorate the building with celebrations of the team's history, including a ring of players around the top level of seating. The Molson Ex Zone features a live band stage and its own red theme.Entertainment
Bell Centre is the main venue in Montreal for large-scale entertainment events. Many artists have performed at the arena, like Beyoncé, Destiny's Child, Olivia Rodrigo, Céline Dion, Les Cowboys Fringants, Gloria Estefan, Stromae, Twenty One Pilots, Tina Turner, Depeche Mode, Prince, Drake, Shakira, Elton John, Billy Joel, Shania Twain, Cher, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Rush, Coldplay, Rihanna, Guns N' Roses, Slipknot, U2, Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato, Katy Perry, Paul McCartney, Lady Gaga, Janet Jackson, Roger Waters, Spice Girls, Justin Timberlake, Barbra Streisand, Madonna, Metallica, Iron Maiden, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Imagine Dragons, Dua Lipa, Sabrina Carpenter and Kylie Minogue.The singer who has performed the most times at the Bell Centre is Céline Dion with 50 performances between 1996 and 2020 from her Falling into You: Around the World tour in 1996 and 1997, Let's Talk About Love World Tour in 1998 and 1999, Taking Chances World Tour in 2008 and 2009, Summer Tour 2016 in 2016 and Courage World Tour in 2019 and 2020. On December 31, 1999, she performed the final show of the Let's Talk About Love World Tour, which was her last performance before a three-year hiatus from the music industry.
In August 1999, the third national tour of Les Misérables visited for a 12-day run. Robert Marien, who originated the role of Jean Valjean in Paris in 1980, as well as in the bilingual Canadian tour which started in Montreal in 1991, joined the cast exclusively for the Montreal stop.
Sports
Ice hockey
The final two games of the three-game 1996 World Cup of Hockey championship series were held at Bell Centre. Bell Centre was also host to two pool games in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. The Bell Centre was the host of the 2009 NHL All-Star Game and hosted the 2009 and 2022 NHL Entry Drafts, the latter of which saw the Canadiens take Juraj Slafkovský first overall.Montreal Canadiens home games have been almost consistently sold-out since October 2005. Additionally, the Canadiens have one of the top attendance figures in the NHL. For the 2009–2010 season, the Habs had the highest attendance played at their home arena.
On December 9, 2014, the Canadiens hosted the Vancouver Canucks, the first home game since the death of Jean Béliveau. The game was preceded by a memorial tribute to him. Bell Centre remained sold-out that night with 21,286 fans in attendance and one empty seat left for Béliveau, with the official attendance shortened by one to honour him.
Bell Centre hosted its first Stanley Cup Final in 2021, with Game 3 and 4 against the defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning played inside the arena. The Canadiens were allowed to have 2,500 people during the first and second round, then 3,500 for the semi-finals and the Stanley Cup Final due to the Government of Quebec's public health restrictions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, although multiple fans stated that the limit was exceeded. The Canadiens had hoped to further increase their capacity limit to 10,500 fans for the Stanley Cup Finals, however that request was denied by the Government of Quebec. While the arena's capacity was limited during the playoffs, thousands more fans gathered outside the arena to watch the games on a TV screen outside of the La Cage sports bar situated adjacent to the Bell Centre.
From September 26 to October 8, 2021, 7,500 fans were allowed at the Bell Centre for the Canadiens’ pre-season games, and for the home opener on October 16, the Government of Quebec made new rules and stated that the Canadiens could return to its full capacity of 21,105 people.
On April 20, 2024, Bell Centre hosted its first home game for the new PWHL team Montreal Victoire, a special match played against the Toronto Sceptres that was marketed as the "Duel at the Top", reflecting the two teams' position atop the league standings at the time. The sell-out crowd of 21,105 set a new attendance record for a women's hockey game. The PWHL returned to the Bell Centre on March 1, 2025 between the Montreal Victoire and the Boston Fleet.
The Bell Centre was one of two host venues for the NHL 4 Nations Face-Off in February 2025, alongside TD Garden in Boston. The first four round robin games were played at the Bell Centre, featuring national teams representing the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland.