Nokia Arena (Tampere)

Nokia Arena (originally Tampere Deck Arena, ) is an indoor arena in Tampere, Finland. It hosts ice hockey games and large cultural events, including the 2022 Men's World Championship. It is also the home arena of Ilves and Tappara of the SM-liiga. Its construction was approved by the City Council of Tampere on May 19, 2010. The arena was officially opened on December 3, 2021.Nokia-areena avataan perjantaina, mutta sen seisomakatsomo ei toimi vieläkään: ”Pomppiminen ja jatkuva seisominen on valitettavasti kielletty” – Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish)
The NHL teams Columbus Blue Jackets and Colorado Avalanche have games at Nokia Arena in the 2022 NHL Global Series.
==Background==
After delays, the arena and the adjacent mixed use high-rise development got a final approval and construction began in January 2018. The final plan calls for a deck to be built over a railway line. This deck will have the multi-purpose arena (at least 13,455 seats), offices, commercial development, housing, a hotel and a casino. The overall vision was designed by Daniel Libeskind.Fazzare, Elizabeth (December 16, 2021). "Daniel Libeskind’s Design in Finland Is the World’s Most Exciting New Stadium". Architectural Digest. Retrieved December 20, 2021.Tampereen Kannen alue on arkkitehti Daniel Libeskindin mielestä todellinen 2000-luvun hanke – "Uskon, että alueesta tulee ikoninen ja kiinnostava" – YLE (in Finnish) The arena is expected to be complete by December 2021, in time for the 2022 IIHF World Championship. The rest of the development is to be completed by 2024. Casino Tampere will also open in connection with the arena, and according to preliminary plans, the casino will employ about 80 people. opened a luxury hotel called Lapland Hotels Arena next to the arena on December 12, 2021.
In March 2020, it was announced that, under a ten-year sponsorship agreement with the UROS Group in Oulu, the arena will be called UROS LIVE. The naming caused a small scale scandal due to name's overly masculine tone, as uros means "male" in Finnish. The agreement was terminated on October 28, 2021 due to Uros Oy's financial problems, and the name of the arena was changed as a result. Nokia Corporation was chosen as the new sponsor on November 19, 2021, and the arena was renamed as Nokia Arena.Finnish Tampere Deck Arena is now Nokia Arena – GlobalNewswireTampere Deck Arena Becomes Nokia Arena – Nokiamob.net
The first scheduled events in the arena were the local matches of the Finnish Championship League on 3 and 4 December 2021. It was originally scheduled to open on 15 December, but later the official opening was brought forward to 3 December.
==Transport==
Nokia Arena is easily accessible by public transport, being located 600 meters from the Tampere central railway station and 350 meters from the long-distance bus station. The nearest stops on the Tampere tramway are also approximately 600 and 350 meters away, for lines 3 and 1 respectively. Several local bus routes run on the nearby streets. During the 2021–22 Liiga season, hockey game tickets are also valid tickets for the buses, trams and trains of Nysse, the regional transport authority.
For private cars, there are few parking spaces at the arena but several parking facilities are available nearby. Before and after major events, the streets around the arena may be closed to vehicular traffic.
==See also==
* List of indoor arenas in Nordic countries
* List of Finnish ice hockey arenas
* Tampere Ice Stadium
==References==
==External links==
* 
* Nokia Arena at Visit Tampere 
Category:Indoor ice hockey venues in Finland