Previously known as the Handball Arena, it was renamed because, aside from handball, it hosted modern pentathlon (fencing, shooting, swimming, horse jumping and running) during the Olympics and was the goalball venue for the 2012 Summer Paralympics.[4]
History
London's Olympic bid proposed that there would be four indoor arenas in the Olympic Park, in addition to other main venues, but the revised masterplan published in 2006 reduced this to three, with the volleyball being moved to Earls Court Exhibition Centre.[5] The fencing arena was also cancelled, and the fencing took place at ExCeL. Construction of the building was completed on time in early 2011 and came in under budget.[6] The design incorporates light pipes and rainwater collectors to reduce both energy and water use by 40%.[7] Test events were successfully hosted at the venue ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.
In January 2012, the venue was renamed the Copper Box from the Handball Arena, thus reflecting the look of the building and the fact that it would not just be used for Handball.[8]British Handball campaigned for the rebrand to be reversed.[4]
Olympics
The Copper Box interior before a handball game
The Copper Box has 7,000 seats. It was used for handball preliminaries and modern pentathlon fencing during the Olympic Games, and for goalball during the Paralympic Games. The handball men's quarter-finals, all semi-finals and both finals were held at the larger Basketball Arena.
The Copper Box was praised for its loud, exciting atmosphere during handball games.[9] For the Paralympics goalball events the crowd in the Box were required to be quiet.[10]
Post-Olympics
Aerial view of the building in 2012
The venue has been adapted into a multi-sport arena for community use, athlete training and major events.
London GD Handball Club, one of the oldest handball clubs in the country, used the venue for its home matches.[14]
The floor was badly damaged during a mass fitness event in January 2014, resulting in several netball internationals having to be played elsewhere at the last minute.[15]
From 22 to 25 February 2018, the venue played host to the ITTF Team World Cup table tennis competition.[19]
The Rocket League Championship Series Season 5 World Championship, an Esports event sponsored by Psyonix, the video game company who created Rocket League, was hosted there on 8–10 June 2018.[20] The event was notable for "The Shot", in which Justin "jstn." Morales, a player on NRG, scored a last-second goal that forced overtime in game 7 of the World Championship Grand Final Bracket Reset. The RLCS would return to the Copper Box for the 2021–2022 season Spring Major on 29 June–3 July 2022, with crowds only being present on the final two days. Moist Esports won that Major's Grand Final 4–3 in series 1 and 4–0 in the Bracket Reset.[21]
In November 2023, the arena was used for the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup play-offs between Great Britain and Sweden, which determine which team is relegated below the qualifying rounds in 2024.[28]
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*unmarked: Men's RLWC only, ‡: Men's and Women's RLWC, †: Women's RLWC only
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