Genting Arena

Genting Arena
The NEC

Exterior of venue under former signage (c.2010)
Former names NEC Arena (1982–2009)
LG Arena (2009–14)
Location Genting Arena
National Exhibition Centre
Birmingham
B40 1NT
Owner The NEC Group
Operator Lloyds Group
Capacity 15,700
Field size 94.8m x 51.4m
Construction
Opened 1980
Renovated 2008–2009
Expanded October 2009
Construction cost £29,000,000 (Refurbishment)
Website
www.gentingarena.co.uk

The Genting Arena, host to large music concerts, is part of the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) complex located in Birmingham, England. The 16,000 capacity Genting Arena was the largest multi-purpose arena in the UK when opening in 1980 as "The NEC Arena" and is still a major popular venue for many large, international touring acts. Together, the NEC and the Genting Arena host over 3 million visitors each year.. The Ticket Factory is the official box office for the Genting Arena.[1]

History

LG Arena logo used from 2009 to 2014.

From 1 September 2008, the NEC Arena was officially renamed as the LG Arena, following a naming-rights sponsorship deal with global electronics company LG. The arena then underwent a £29 million overhaul of its facilities, paid for by loans from Birmingham City Council and regional development agency Advantage West Midlands.

Work on the LG Arena was finished mid October 2009 and the arena hosted its first concert with Tom Jones. Included in the installation were around 1,000 new seats, bringing the capacity to 16,000[2] to compete with venues such as the O2 Arena in London and the Manchester Arena in Manchester, which are amongst the busiest music venues in the world. Also constructed were new hospitality areas and a forum containing new bars, restaurants and other customer facilities. Prior to its first concert, the arena hosted the 2009 Horse of the Year show.

In 2011 the LG Arena became the 10th busiest arena in the world.[3]

World's Busiest Arenas – 2014[4]
Venue 2014 Ticket sales for concerts/shows
The O2, London, UK 1.82 million
The SSE Hydro, Glasgow, UK 1.05 million
Manchester Arena, Manchester, UK 1.01 million
Madison Square Garden, New York, USA 793,000
Monterrey Arena, Monterrey, Mexico 782,000
Barclays Center, Brooklyn NY, USA 724,000
Arena Ciudad Di Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico 714,000
Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois, USA 653,000
Lanxess Arena, Cologne, Germany 642,000
Philips Arena, Atlanta 608,000
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada 585,000
Ziggo Dome, Amsterdam, Netherlands 577,000
Genting Arena, Birmingham, UK 550,000
Staples Center, Los Angeles, 520,000
O2 World Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany 519,000
Allphones Arena, Sydney, Australia 512,000

It was announced in November 2014 that as part of a sponsorship deal with the casino group, the arena would be renamed the "Genting Arena" from January 2015.

Events

Being able to host large and intimate shows the Arena does offer a wide range of comedians that are nationally and internationally known with acts such as Michael McIntyre, Milton Jones, Ricky Gervais, Al Murray and Peter Kay bringing their shows to the Arena.

In 2010 and 2011, it played host to the Birmingham audition stages of the ITV singer search programme The X Factor.

Series Date
7 Sunday 13 June and Monday 14 June 2010
8 Wednesday 1 June and Thursday 2 June 2011

On Sunday 19 December 2010, it played host to the 2010 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award. On Saturday 5 November 2011, it played host to UFC 138.

In 2010 and 2013, it played host to a BAMMA event.

Event Date
BAMMA 3 Saturday 15 May 2010
BAMMA 14 Saturday 14 December 2013

Major music events

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

Since the 1980s, The NEC has hosted performances by many international musicians and music groups, several of which have played at The NEC Arena on more than one occasion.

NEC Group

Parent company The NEC Group also owns and operates the Barclaycard Arena (previously the National Indoor Arena) and International Convention Centre (ICC), both in central Birmingham, and the National Exhibition Centre.

References

  1. "Sponsors". Genting Arena Birmingham.
  2. "Venue Information". Genting Arena Birmingham.
  3. "Manchester Arena Is Second Busiest Arena In The World". Manchester Confidential. Archived from the original on 7 June 2012.
  4. "Manchester Arena is third busiest in the world" (PDF). 13 January 2015.
  5. Keogh, Kat (11 November 2011). "Black Sabbath reunion: New album and world tour for original line-up". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 15 February 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to LG Arena.

Coordinates: 52°27′12″N 1°43′10″W / 52.45333°N 1.71944°W / 52.45333; -1.71944

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