Vertu Motors Arena
Events venue in Newcastle, England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Vertu Motors Arena (formerly the Eagles Community Arena) is a multi-purpose built venue for events, meetings, sports and the community in the Elswick area of the city of Newcastle, England. The arena has a capacity for up to 3,500 spectators and is home to the Newcastle Eagles of the Super League Basketball and Women's Super League Basketball.
Home of the Newcastle Eagles | |
 Interactive map of Vertu Motors Arena | |
| Former names | Eagles Community Arena |
|---|---|
| Location | Newcastle, England |
| Coordinates | 54.9637°N 1.6369°W |
| Owner | Eagles Community Foundation |
| Capacity | Basketball: 2,800 Boxing: 3,500 Entertainment: 3,300 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | January 2019 |
| Construction cost | £6.5 million |
| Tenants | |
| Newcastle Eagles (2019–present) | |
| Website | |
| vertumotorsarena | |
Background
It had been a stated aim of Newcastle Eagles owner Paul Blake 'for at least 10 years, probably longer' for the club and its foundation to own and control their own facility.[1] The club had previously been based at the Metro Radio Arena and Northumbria University's Sport Central.
In partnership with Newcastle City Council, the North East Local Enterprise Partnership, Sport England and Newcastle College, planning permission was approved and construction work on the arena began in November 2017.[2][3][4][5] The arena was officially opened in January 2019, when the Eagles hosted the Plymouth Raiders in a BBL Championship match.[6][7]
The arena was awarded three prizes in special achievement, community value and social accessibility at the 2020 Lord Mayor's Design Awards.[8][9]
International basketball matches
| Date | Competition | Home team | Result | Away team | Attendance | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 February 2020 | FIBA EuroBasket 2021 Qualifier | Great Britain  |
81–73 |  Germany |
2,800 | [10] |
| 25 November 2021 | FIBA 2023 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
78–69 |  Greece |
2,600 | |
| 3 July 2022 | FIBA 2023 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
71–85 |  Turkey |
2,300 | |
| 28 August 2022 | FIBA 2023 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
80–87 |  Latvia |
2,300 | |
| 11 November 2022 | FIBA 2023 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
68-74 |  Serbia |
2,003 | |
| 24 February 2023 | FIBA 2023 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
59-88 |  Belgium |
2,239 | |
| 23 February 2024 | FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifier | Great Britain |
98-94 |  Netherlands |
2,213 | |
| 24 February 2025 | FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifier | Great Britain |
96-75 |  Czech Republic |
2,181 | |
| 27 February 2026 | FIBA 2027 Basketball World Cup Qualifier | Great Britain |
57-93 |  Italy |
- | |
Boxing matches
| Date | Competition | Main event | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 September 2023 | MF & DAZN: X Series 009 | Idris Virgo vs Aaron Chalmers | Virgo — TKO (3/5) | [11] |
| 14 September 2024 | MF & DAZN: X Series 18 – Stake Pro Tournament Card | Elle Brooke vs Jenny Savage | Brooke — UD | [12] |