Harringay Arena - Sports Venue

Sports Venue

Specifically designed as an ice hockey venue, it quickly became famous as a venue for both ice hockey and boxing.

Up to the Second World War, ice hockey enjoyed its most popular era in the UK until a revival in the 1990s. Two local teams were formed for the Arena's opening, Harringay Racers and Harringay Greyhounds. On October 26, 1938, the first ice hockey game to be televised anywhere in the world was played at Harringay between the Racers and Streatham. A year later, WWII started and ice hockey matches were suspended. This interruption proved very damaging to the sport's popularity and post-war audiences remained thin for the remainder of the Arena's life.

Boxing became firmly established at the Arena prior to the war. On April 7, 1938 Harringay was the venue for the first boxing match to be televised live when the full 15 rounds between Len Harvey v Jock McAvoy were broadcast. Following the war Harringay was a very successful boxing venue. During its 22 year life, it was home to five world title fights, a record for any British venue by the time the Arena ceased operating as a venue in 1958.
However famous the Arena became for boxing, commercial necessity led to a diversification into a wider range of events including:

• The basketball and wrestling events for the 1948 Summer Olympics.
• All England Open Badminton Championships from 1947 to 1949.
• Home of the Horse of the Year Show for its first ten years, from 1949 to 1958. In its final year at Harringay, the show featured in the first broadcast of the BBC's new Saturday afternoon sports programme Grandstand.
• Roller Speedway from 1939 until 1952, with a break during the War. In 1953, with the demise of roller speedway, the Arena hosted a Roller Derby match.
• Wrestling.
• Five-a-side football.
• Basketball.
• European Netball Championships from 1955.