Sahara Arena

Sahara Arena entered Grand Theft Auto VI promotional material in the first trailer at 0:25. The sequence looks at the building from behind while travelling along Interstate 404, rather than showing the arena floor or any event inside. Its documented GTA VI debut is therefore an exterior roadside view in Vice City.

A later official screenshot presented the opposite side from above, looking toward the front of the complex and its surrounding waterfront district. That image made the Sahara Arena name legible and identified the Vice City Narcos as the team associated with the venue. No earlier Grand Theft Auto appearance or alternate version of the arena is identified.

The arena is chiefly based on Miami, Florida's Kaseya Center, a multi-purpose building beside Biscayne Bay in downtown Miami and the home venue of the Miami Heat. Sahara Arena carries over the basic idea of a major basketball arena placed at the edge of a downtown bay.

Its exterior treatment differs from the real building's. Kaseya Center uses plain black fins across its facade, while Sahara Arena replaces that restrained finish with illuminated colored elements after dark. The comparison links the fictional Narcos venue to Kaseya Center’s waterfront setting and basketball role without making the two buildings identical.