Palace Sports & Entertainment (PS&E) venues The Palace of Auburn Hills and DTE Energy Music Theatre and its sports franchises earned numerous honors, championships and top-rankings in both the sports and entertainment worlds, while providing countless memories and hosting scores of unforgettable events during the 10 year span from 2000 to 2009.
“Throughout the past decade, in good times and in difficult times, people in this area have known they could count on coming to our venues as a diversion, to have an enjoyable time and to know they will be treated well,” said President and CEO of PS&E Tom Wilson. “This association means as much to us as any of the recognitions we have received or championships we have earned.”
The Palace and DTE Energy Music Theatre maintained their national reputation as top entertainment facilities by regularly showing up on various entertainment publications’ year-end lists of top-selling venues throughout the decade.
The Palace was listed number two in total attendance in Billboard magazine’s Decade End Top 10 Venues of 15,001 or more, while DTE Energy Music Theatre topped the total attendance category in Billboard’s Decade End Amphitheaters list. The two entertainment venues’ popularity among touring acts was proven when they combined to host 49 of the 50 performers listed on Pollstar magazine’s Top 50 North American Tours of the Decade.
The two venues finished the decade strongly in 2009 by combining to host 11 of the top 15 tours according to Pollstar’s year-end list of Top Tours of North America. DTE Energy Music Theatre was listed as the most-attended amphitheater in 2009 by both Billboard and Pollstar, making it the 19th consecutive year it has been listed as such by major entertainment trade publications. PS&E was listed among only eight U.S. promoters with more than one million tickets sold in 2009, according to Pollstar’s Top 100 Worldwide Promoters year end ticket sales list.
The Palace gained additional national recognition in 2009 when comedian and late show host Jay Leno chose the arena to host his free “Comedy Stimulus” shows in front of capacity crowds on April 7 & 8.
The past decade also saw The Palace earn a Prime Site Award by Facilities magazine in 2004 and it was nominated for Arena of the Year by Pollstar in 2000, 2003 and 2008. DTE Energy Music Theatre was honored as Best Large Outdoor Concert Venue by Pollstar in 2000 and it earned nominations for the award on three additional occasions during the decade: 2001, 2002 and 2004. In 2007, PS&E’s Executive Vice President of Booking and Marketing Marilyn Hauser earned national recognition when she was voted Facility Executive of the Year in Pollstar’s Annual Readers Poll.
The Detroit Pistons were a mainstay among the NBA’s elite for the majority of the decade. Detroit said goodbye to teal and returned to its original colors of red, white and blue in 2001. They recorded 466 wins from 2000-2009, the most of any Eastern Conference team and the fourth most in the entire league. The team won its third NBA World Championship in 2004, made back-to-back appearances in the NBA Finals in 2004-2005 and competed in the Eastern Conference Finals six consecutive years from 2003-2008. In addition, the Pistons were crowned Central Division champions six times: 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Area fans proved they were the most supportive in the NBA throughout the decade as the Pistons lead the league in attendance six seasons: 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2007-08 and 2008-09. The Palace was sold out for every home contest for 259 consecutive games between January 19, 2004 and February 1, 2009.
The Detroit Shock was most certainly the decade’s most dominant team in the WNBA. In addition to winning three league championships in 2003, 2006 and 2008, the team made three consecutive WNBA Finals appearances in 2006, 2007 and 2008; four straight Eastern Conference Finals appearances from 2006-2009 to go along with seven consecutive years in the playoffs from 2003-2009.
The Palace also hosted the NCAA Men’s Division 1 Basketball tournament twice in the decade. In 2000, the building was filled for all three sessions of the Mideast Regional Finals and, in 2006, it hosted first and second round contests. In 2007, the NCAA held its Wrestling Championships at The Palace and posted an NCAA-record one-session crowd of 17,780.
The arena earned additional national attention when it hosted the controversial Mike Tyson vs. Andrew Golota prize fight on October 20, 2000.
PS&E ownership includes The Palace and DTE Energy Music Theatre, as well as the management of Meadow Brook Music Festival on the campus of Oakland University. Combined, PS&E’s Michigan venues average 300 events and 3.5 million guests annually.
Contact: Jeff Corey
(248) 377-8204
jcorey@palacenet.com
