PHILADELPHIA -- One more link to Philadelphia's championship history is destined for destruction.

The Spectrum, once home to title-winning 76ers and Flyers teams, will close in 2009 and be demolished to make way for an entertainment development, arena owner Comcast-Spectacor announced yesterday.

"The Spectrum is my baby," Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider said. "But after a lot of thinking and discussions, we all feel it is in our best interest to close the Spectrum."

The arena, where the Flyers faced off against the Soviet Red Army team and Christian Laettner hit his last-second game-winner to beat Kentucky in the 1992 NCAA tournament, will close following the 2008-09 hockey and soccer seasons.

The Flyers were the only major Philadelphia team to clinch a title in the building, capturing the Stanley Cup in 1974 with a 1-0 victory over Boston.

"It's something we've been reluctant to do, but at this point, I think the building has seen its best days," Snider said.