Originally known as the San Diego International Sports Center, then the San Diego Sports Arena, the concert center took the name “iPayOne Center” from 2004-2007 when a real estate savings company based in Carlsbad held the naming rights. On this fateful evening, Ed Sheeran took the stage for his Divide Tour, which blew my socks off.īut before we go there, let’s take a moment to look a little deeper at the Valley View Casino Center. Music events have included The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Madonna, the Bieber, and Taylor Swift. A handful of tennis and soccer teams have also called it home. The San Diego Rockets, for example, were based at the Valley View Casino Center from 1967-1971 until they moved to Houston and became…that’s right…the Houston Rockets. Built in 1966, this 15,000-seat venue has housed many of San Diego’s sport’s teams.
But there it sits in the Midway district, currently home to San Diego’s professional ice hockey team, the San Diego Gulls. I can’t say that the Valley View Casino Center has ever struck me as a beautiful building here in San Diego.
