Manchester Arena
Exterior of venue (c.2006)
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| Former names | NYNEX Arena (1995–98) Manchester Evening News Arena (1998–2011) Manchester Arena (2011-13; 2015-present) Phones 4u Arena (2013–15) |
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| Location | Trinity Way Victoria Station Manchester, Lancashire, M3 1AR England |
| Coordinates | 53°29′17″N 2°14′38″W / 53.48806°N 2.24389°WCoordinates: 53°29′17″N 2°14′38″W / 53.48806°N 2.24389°W |
| Owner | Mansford |
| Operator | SMG Europe |
| Capacity | 21,000 |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 1993 |
| Opened | 15 July 1995 |
| Construction cost |
£52 million (£95.5 million in 2017 pounds) |
| Architect | DLA Design, Austin-Smith:Lord and Ellerbe Becket |
| Structural engineer | Arup Group Limited |
| Tenants | |
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Manchester Giants (BBL) (1995–2001) Manchester Storm (BISL, BJL) (1995–2002) Manchester Phoenix (EIHL) (2003–04) |
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| Website | |
| www |
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The Manchester Arena is an indoor arena in Hunts Bank, Manchester, England. Situated immediately north of the city centre, most of the arena is situated above Manchester Victoria station in air rights space.
The arena has the highest seating capacity of any indoor venue in the United Kingdom, and second largest in the European Union with a capacity of 21,000 and is one of the world's busiest indoor arenas, hosting music and sporting events such as boxing and swimming. The arena was a key part of Manchester's bids to host the Olympic Games in 1996 and 2000 and was eventually used for the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
The structure was designed by DLA Ellerbe Beckett, Ove Arup & Partners, and Austin-Smith:Lord. The arena is sited in air rights space over the station and was constructed without disrupting use of the station. The original plans included a glass tower which was not built. It originally hosted a seven screen multiplex cinema (1996–2000), a multi-purpose arena and multi-storey parking. The former multiplex cinema is now used as a call centre.
A large truss measuring 105 metres spans the roof. Reinforced concrete is used to increase sound insulation. The upper parts of the building are clad in purple-grey with green glass. The arena was opened on 15 July 1995.
The arena was one of the first indoor venues in Europe to be built following layout of 360 degree seating, and is the only arena in the UK to have this feature (London's The O2 also has 360 degrees seating, but only on its lower tier, whereas Manchester's arena features it on both tiers). Other European indoor venues built to the same concept include the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Arena Zagreb in Zagreb, Spaladium Arena in Split, Kombank Arena in Belgrade, O2 Arena in Prague, and O2 World in Hamburg.
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