Located one block away from Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the arena is 1 million square feet (93,000 m2) in size on an 11-acre (4.5 ha) site.

[11] The Coyotes hosted their first regular season home game in Arizona at the arena on October 10, 1996, with a 4–1 win over the San Jose Sharks.

Just over seven years later, the team played their last home game within Phoenix city limits with a 5–2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on December 15, 2003.

They lost in their only championship game appearance at Gila River Arena, a 56–42 ArenaBowl XXIX loss to the Philadelphia Soul on August 26, 2016.

Among the notable boxing events held in Phoenix, they include Oscar De La Hoya's early bouts, Michael Carbajal's WBO world Junior Flyweight title against Josue Camacho in 1994 and Julio César Chávez ended his career with a fight at the arena.

Irish rock band U2 has performed in the arena multiple times, including two stops during their 2001 Elevation Tour on March 28 and November 23 of that year.

On March 20, 2022, Dua Lipa performed a sold-out show as part of her Future Nostalgia Tour, with Megan Thee Stallion and Caroline Polachek as her opening acts.

On September 10, 2022, Kendrick Lamar performed at the Footprint Center for the Big Steppers Tour with Baby Keem and Tanna Leone as opening acts on the show.

On March 10, 2024, Kanye West and Ty Dolla Sign performed at the Footprint Center as a listening party for their collaborative album Vultures 1.

On July 25, 2024, South Korean boy band Ateez performed at the arena as part of the North American leg of their 2024 Towards the Light: Will to Power tour.

Construction began on August 1, 1990, as former Suns owner Jerry Colangelo envisioned a need for a new arena to be built in Phoenix to replace Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

About 27 months later, Footprint Center was officially inaugurated with the Suns' 1992–1993 season opening 111–105 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on November 7, 1992.

When the original Winnipeg Jets publicly announced their intention to relocate to Phoenix for the 1996–97 NHL season, the arena was quickly reconfigured to accommodate ice hockey.

Its tight seating configuration is suited for basketball, but made it logistically difficult to fit a standard NHL rink onto the floor.

The arena added a second video board for an area of particularly obstructed views, and proposed numerous plans to improve sight lines and boost the seating capacity above 17,000, though these did not come to fruition.

That $67 million project was constructed to keep patrons cool while waiting in line for tickets or spending time inside the building before events.

[22] Former Suns owner Jerry Colangelo originally thought of the renovations after visiting Staples Center in Los Angeles and envisioned a similar entertainment district in Phoenix.

Up to 80% of all planned work was completed in time for the 2020 preseason home opener, a 112–107 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on December 16, 2020.

Talking Stick Resort in nearby Scottsdale[29] secured the new naming rights with an official announcement outside the Casino Arizona Pavilion on December 2, 2014.

The name change to Talking Stick Resort Arena was completed in September 2015, in time for the start of the 2015–16 Phoenix Suns season.

After negotiations on a contract extension stalled earlier on in the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Arizona, Talking Stick Resort officially announced the naming rights deal expired on November 6, 2020.