11 Famous Wrestling "Holy Grounds" That Still Stand
7. ECW Arena
Even countercultural punks need their holy land, and nothing is holier to an edgy contrarian wrestling fan than the ECW arena. Known in the past as Viking Hall and currently as 2300 Arena, the "world's most famous bingo hall" was the home of Extreme Championship Wrestling. It was dingy, dilapidated, and by many accounts, smelled terrible, but that was the kind of uninviting atmosphere the ECW faithful wanted: it was their dingy, dilapidated, smelly bingo hall.
More than atmosphere however, the ECW arena was like the Ellis Island of wrestling. It was where Chris Jericho and Rey Mysterio caught the attention of WCW. It was where Steve Austin did away with his Hollywood Blonde persona and found the angry, rough edge that would make him the biggest star in the history of the business. It didn't matter who you were, where you came from, or what level of skill you had, under Paul Heyman, everyone had a home in the ECW arena.
Nowadays, the building has been refurbished and is more upscale, but fans will always remember the grungy pit they worshipped back in the day.