MANCHESTER, UK (CelebrityAccess) — Manchester’s newest arena Coop Live has officially opened, with Tim Leiweke, chairman and CEO of Oak View Group (OVG), revealing the venue cost nearly £450 million to build. announced (€523.4 million), following a “catastrophic” incident that was narrowly avoided earlier this month.
The venue closed on Tuesday night with a performance by Manchester-based rock band Elbow, who performed in front of about 12,000 fans, according to local media reports.
Co-Op Live, a joint venture between OVG and Manchester City’s parent company City Football Group, is part of the Etihad Campus, which also includes the Premier League club’s Etihad Stadium.
Co-op Live was originally scheduled to hold its first event in 2023 with a performance by comedian Peter Kay, but the opening date has been postponed to April 2024. The latest problems began when arena officials announced last month that it would not open this year. It was scheduled for April 23 due to power supply issues. The announcement comes after the arena apologized after having to reduce capacity at short notice for a test event featuring Rick Astley.
Shows by The Black Keys, Olivia Rodrigo and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie were subsequently postponed, and their shows were moved to the nearby AO Arena.
Leiweke told the Manchester Evening News: “I think people should stop kicking and start appreciating what we have here and the impact it’s going to have on Manchester. If you want to kick, you can kick. We have spent the past three weeks getting the building ready and are now open for business…and we believe we will be successful long-term.
“We have 120 events in the first year and 120 events are already booked. Last week we sold 70,000 tickets for Billie Eilish. I don’t hear anyone talking about that.” It’s like, “Wait a minute, is this building a failure?” 70,000 tickets for Billie Eilish and Travis Scott sold out in 3 minutes. Without Co-op Live, most of these shows wouldn’t be here. ”
Leiweke added: yes. That’s what I focus on. Have we felt frustrated, apologetic, and apologetic for the past three weeks? Yes, but this building will last him 30-40 years and is the most expensive building ever built outside of the United States, and we built it privately. ”
https://celebrityaccess.com/2024/05/15/after-a-series-of-false-starts-co-op-live-successfully-hosted-its-inaugural-concert-on-tuesday-night/