Mercedes-Benz Arena (Berlin)

Coordinates: 52°30′20″N 13°26′36″E / 52.50556°N 13.44333°E / 52.50556; 13.44333

Mercedes-Benz Arena
Former names O2 World (2008-2015)
Location Mercedes-Platz 1, Friedrichshain, Berlin, Germany
Operator AEG
Capacity Concerts/MMA: 17,000
Basketball: 14,500[1][2]
Ice hockey: 14,200
Surface Multi-surface
Construction
Broke ground 2006
Opened September 2008
Construction cost € 165 million
Architect HOK Sport (now Populous)[3]
JSK Architects[4]
Tenants
ALBA Berlin (BBL) (2008–present)
Eisbären Berlin (DEL) (2008–present)

The Mercedes-Benz Arena (German: [mɛɐ̯ˌtseːdəsˈbɛnts ʔaˌʁeːnaː])[5] is a multipurpose indoor arena in the Friedrichshain neighborhood of Berlin, Germany, which opened in 2008.[6]

With a capacity of 17,000 people,[7] it is home to the Eisbären Berlin ice hockey club and the ALBA Berlin basketball team, and is used for other ice hockey, basketball and handball matches as well as concerts.[6]

The arena hosted the 2008–09 Euroleague Final Four.[8] The arena was one of the most prominent elements of the Mediaspree urban redevelopment project, quickly gaining emblematic status in the debates surrounding the project's impact.

Naming rights

In 2015, German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz reached a deal with the arena management to rename the venue Mercedes-Benz Arena Berlin for twenty years.[5] Between 2008 and 2015, the arena was known as O2 World Berlin (German: [ɔʊˈtuː ˌvœːɐ̯lt]) due to sponsorship contract with Telefónica Germany, a telecommunications company.

Notable events

The first band to play at the Mercedes-Benz Arena was Metallica on 12 September 2008.

Tina Turner performed two sold out concerts on 26 and 27 January 2009, with her Tina!: 50th Anniversary Tour.

The arena was also the home for the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards.

Sting performed during his Symphonicities Tour on 21 September 2010, along with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. This show has been recorded for the live album Live in Berlin.

On 21 February 2009, Scorpions received Germany's ECHO Honorary Award for lifetime achievement at Berlin's O2 World.[9]

The venue played host to one NHL Premiere game for the 2011–12 NHL season on 8 October 2011. The Buffalo Sabres defeated the Los Angeles Kings, 4–2.[10]

The arena hosted the second stage of the 2011 Euro Beach Soccer League between 8–10 July.[11]

Britney Spears performed a sold out concert on 26 July 2009 during The Circus Starring: Britney Spears. She will come back on 6 August 2018 as part of her Britney Spears: Piece of Me Tour.

Muse performed a sold out concert on 29 October 2009 during The Resistance Tour

Kylie Minogue performed her Aphrodite: Les Folies Tour show on 1 March 2011.

Bob Dylan and Mark Knopfler played the O2 during the dual European tour on 29 October 2011.

On 27 March 2012, Il Divo performed a concert as part of their 2012 Wicked Game album tour.

Madonna performed during her MDNA Tour on two sold out nights in June 2012, and will return with two shows in November 2015 on her Rebel Heart Tour

Pearl Jam performed at the arena on 4 & 5 July 2012 during their 2012 tour

Laura Pausini performed here as part of her Inedito World Tour

The Beach Boys played during their 50th Anniversary Tour in August 2012.

Lady Gaga performed her Born This Way Ball in September 2012 for one sold out night, and on 9 October 2014 on her ArtRave: The Artpop Ball

Jennifer Lopez performed during her Dance Again World Tour in October 2012 for one night.

Beach soccer returned to the arena in August 2012 to again host the second stage of the 2012 Euro Beach Soccer League.

One Direction performed on May 11, 2013 on their Take Me Home Tour

Beyoncé performed to two sold out crowds on 23 and 24 May 2013, with her Mrs. Carter Show.

Iron Maiden performed on 18 June 2013.

Rihanna performed on 2 July 2013, on her Diamonds World Tour.

On 7 February 2014 country-pop superstar Taylor Swift performed a show on her Red Tour.

On 22 May 2014 French-Armenian singer Charles Aznavour performed a show as part of his The Legend Returns Tour.

On 19 November 2014 rock band Linkin Park performed a show as a part of their The Hunting Party Tour.

Depeche Mode performed at the stadium three times: the first one was on 9 January 2010 during their Tour of the Universe. The second and the third were on 25 and 27 November 2013 during their Delta Machine Tour, in front of a total sold out crowd of 28,332 people. The 2013 shows were filmed and recorded for the group's concert film Depeche Mode Live in Berlin and for the band's live album Live in Berlin Soundtrack.

U2 performed at the arena on 24, 25, 28 and 29 September 2015 as part of their Innocence + Experience Tour. They will also play at the arena on 31 August and 1 September 2018 as part of their Experience + Innocence Tour.

Irish-American dancer and musician Michael Flatley reprises his role as Lord of the Dance on 6 December 2010 during the Return of Michael Flatley As Lord of the Dance tour. A few scenes from the 3D concert film Lord of the Dance 3D, were filmed in the during the performance in the arena alongside the O2 London and O2 Dublin. The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray under the title Michael Flatley Returns As Lord of the Dance in 2011. A 3D version was released only in Blu-ray in late 2011.

In October 2013, the artist Jakob Kupfer[12] transformed the LED facade of the o2 World Berlin into a giant art installation.

On 31 May 2014 UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs. Mousasi was the first event that the UFC had hosted in the venue.

It currently hosts a group of the FIBA EuroBasket 2015.

On 31 October 2015 it hosted the 2015 League of Legends World Championship final.[13]

On June 20, 2015 held UFC Fight Night: Jędrzejczyk vs. Penne.

Singer and songwriter Adele, performed on 7th and 8 May 2016 as part of her Adele Live 2016 tour.

Singer Celine Dion, performed on 23 and 24 July 2017 as part of her European summer tour, Celine Dion Live 2017

On 22 February 2018, it hosted the 4th week of the 2018 Premier League Darts from the Professional Darts Corporation, the first time the event took place in Germany.

The rumors point to Germany hosting the next Eurovision Song Contest, in its 64th edition. The last edition of the festival held in Lisbon was won by Netta, representative of Israel. The rules are clear country that wins Eurovision is responsible for organizing the show the following year; However, the political and social situation in the Middle East would affect the organization of the festival. The government of the Prime Minister of Israel has announced Jerusalem as the venue for the festival in May 2019. Rumors suggest that the organizing body of the European Broadcasting Union EBU-UER would move the headquarters of the eurofestival to Germany. Being one of the few countries that would have the necessary requirements to host the contest, the same was rumored in 2017 when political conflicts between Russia and Ukraine put at risk the headquarters of Kiev 2017. The rumors and the press suggest that the NDR Norddeutscher Rundfunk would be the option to organize the show with Berlin as the host city and the location would be the Mercedes-Benz Arena As seen in the situation, the Mercedes-Benz Arena would be the official venue of the Eurovision Song Contest 2019.

Attendance

This is a list of home attendance figures of Alba Berlin at O2 World.[14]

German League[15]European competitions
Season Total High Low Average Season Total High Low Average
2008–09232,49014,8006,10310,108 2008–09 EL90,11114,8009,14711,264
2009–10193,94014,5007,54310,207 2009–10 EC72,81214,5009,28310,402
2010–11262,36714,5007,43110,932 2010–11 EC51,7579,2227,1148,626
2011–12207,47514,5008,84510,920 2011–12 EC45,9298,8566,1847,655
2012–13182,64513,7866,87810,147 2012–13 EL108,12211,9887,8169,010
2013–14245,16314,5008,10510,659 2013–14 EC72,9848,1106,2047,298
2014–15224,74813,6887,27710,216 2014–15 EL123,50114,1338,22610,292
2015–16178,91114,0527,2189,940 2015–16 EC67,0688,8556,2517,452
2016–17166,33713,0226,3769,785 2016–17 EC47,4358,6665,4296,776
2017–18 2017–18 EC62,0508,8786,3227,756

References

  1. Worldstadiums.com basketball capacity 14,500. Archived 6 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. Euroleague.net "the 16,000-seat o2 World".
  3. O2 World Berlin architect: Populous
  4. O2 World Berlin Germany Archived 25 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine. architect: JSK Architects
  5. 1 2 Aus o2 World wird Mercedes-Benz Arena Berlin Archived 26 January 2015 at Archive.is, 26 January 2015 (in German)
  6. 1 2 Startschuss für die O2 World in Berlin Archived 14 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine., 27 April 2006 (in German)
  7. Data and facts about O2 World Archived 8 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine. 30 September 2008 (in German)
  8. Euroleague Basketball, AEG Announce Global Partnership Agreement
  9. "Scorpions performs at Germany's ECHO Awards". Blabbermouth.net. 22 February 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2009.
  10. "Premiere 2011 teams, locations revealed". NHL.com. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
  11. "EBSL 2011 goes to Berlin!". beachsoccer.com. 1 June 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  12. www.jakobkupfer.com
  13. "2015 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP VENUES". lolesports. Riot Games. Archived from the original on 11 April 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  14. Attendance data at Basketball Bundesliga website
  15. Including playoff games
Preceded by
Palacio de Deportes de la CAM
Palacio de Deportes de la CAM
Euroleague
Final Four
Venue

2009
2016
Succeeded by
Palais de Paris-Bercy
TBD
Preceded by
Seoul World Cup Stadium
Seoul
League of Legends World Championship
Final Venue

2015
Succeeded by
Staples Center
Los Angeles
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