WATCH: Rendering gives first look at future home of Thunder in downtown Oklahoma City
Open the video player below to see the first renderings
Updated: 3:14 PM CDT Jul 16, 2025
Oklahoma City released a video showing the first renderings of the new downtown arena that will be the future home of the Thunder. In December 2023, Oklahoma City voters approved a penny sales tax to build the new, publicly owned downtown arena with an estimated cost of about $900 million. With the approval came an agreement with Thunder officials to keep the franchise in Oklahoma for 25 years after the new arena opened.On Wednesday, a video that was shown during Mayor David Holt’s State of the City address gave Oklahoma City residents and Thunder fans a first look at renderings for the new arena. Open the video player above to watch, and you can learn more on the arena’s website here. The new downtown Oklahoma City arena will be built on the site of the former Cox Convention Center across the street from the Paycom Center near Reno Avenue and Ron Norick Boulevard. Demolition began in March and will continue through late 2025. “The primary purpose of our new arena was to secure a long-term future with major league professional sports, and to keep us competitive for concerts, but there are secondary benefits as well,” Holt said in a news release. “One of those other benefits is the opportunity to raise the aesthetic bar in our downtown and to make an architectural statement. This arena has the potential to become a signature building for our city, known around the world. I believe this design absolutely seizes that opportunity, and I am grateful to David Manica and his colleagues, as well as the Thunder and everyone who has been a part of this process the last few months. This arena design truly is one of one.” The renderings were released about a month after the Thunder won the NBA championship, the first since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City. The final design will require approval from the OKC City Council.The new arena, which will be at least 750,000 square feet is scheduled to open by late summer 2028, with city officials saying it “will serve as a catalyst for the city’s ongoing economic and cultural renaissance.” Video Below: New downtown OKC arena will not be called Paycom Center, as company retires naming rights agreement “I’m thrilled and honored to be leading the design of the new arena in downtown Oklahoma City,” MANICA owner David Manica said in the news release. “The collaboration between my team, the City, and the Thunder has certainly resulted in a design that will set a new standard for multi-use sport venues around the world. The design is truly a one-of-a-kind, and there is nothing else like it in the world. It will be an icon for the future of this growing city, and a place for the community to come together to share incredible new memories for generations to come.” The Thunder will continue to play home games at the Paycom Center until the new arena opens. The target completion date is late summer of 2028, and there is a contractual obligation to open the new arena by June 2029. Top Headlines ‘American Idol’ executive Robin Kaye and husband found dead in LA home Third teenager dies days after crash on Garvin County highway, OHP says Suspect in custody after firing shots during domestic incident, leading to police presence in SW OKC How to save on back-to-school shopping We found the hidden back-to-school shopping sections so you don’t have to
OKLAHOMA CITY —
Oklahoma City released a video showing the first renderings of the new downtown arena that will be the future home of the Thunder.
In December 2023, Oklahoma City voters approved a penny sales tax to build the new, publicly owned downtown arena with an estimated cost of about $900 million. With the approval came an agreement with Thunder officials to keep the franchise in Oklahoma for 25 years after the new arena opened.
On Wednesday, a video that was shown during Mayor David Holt’s State of the City address gave Oklahoma City residents and Thunder fans a first look at renderings for the new arena. Open the video player above to watch, and you can learn more on the arena’s website here.
The new downtown Oklahoma City arena will be built on the site of the former Cox Convention Center across the street from the Paycom Center near Reno Avenue and Ron Norick Boulevard. Demolition began in March and will continue through late 2025.
“The primary purpose of our new arena was to secure a long-term future with major league professional sports, and to keep us competitive for concerts, but there are secondary benefits as well,” Holt said in a news release. “One of those other benefits is the opportunity to raise the aesthetic bar in our downtown and to make an architectural statement. This arena has the potential to become a signature building for our city, known around the world. I believe this design absolutely seizes that opportunity, and I am grateful to David Manica and his colleagues, as well as the Thunder and everyone who has been a part of this process the last few months. This arena design truly is one of one.”
The renderings were released about a month after the Thunder won the NBA championship, the first since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City.
The final design will require approval from the OKC City Council.
The new arena, which will be at least 750,000 square feet is scheduled to open by late summer 2028, with city officials saying it “will serve as a catalyst for the city’s ongoing economic and cultural renaissance.”
Video Below: New downtown OKC arena will not be called Paycom Center, as company retires naming rights agreement
“I’m thrilled and honored to be leading the design of the new arena in downtown Oklahoma City,” MANICA owner David Manica said in the news release. “The collaboration between my team, the City, and the Thunder has certainly resulted in a design that will set a new standard for multi-use sport venues around the world. The design is truly a one-of-a-kind, and there is nothing else like it in the world. It will be an icon for the future of this growing city, and a place for the community to come together to share incredible new memories for generations to come.”
The Thunder will continue to play home games at the Paycom Center until the new arena opens. The target completion date is late summer of 2028, and there is a contractual obligation to open the new arena by June 2029.
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