Mercedes-Benz Arena
| Mercedes-Benz Arena | |
|---|---|
| |
| Location | O2-Platz 1, Berlin, Germany |
| Broke ground | 2006 |
| Opened | 2008 |
| Owner | |
| Operator | AEG |
| Surface | Multi-surface |
| Construction cost | € 165 million |
| Architect | HOK Sport (now Populous)[1] JSK Architects[2] |
| Former names | O2 World (2008 - 2015) |
| Tenants | Eisbären Berlin (DEL) (2008–present) |
| Capacity | Concerts/MMA: 17,000 Basketball: 14,500[3][4] Ice hockey: 14,200 |
Mercedes-Benz Arena is a multi-use indoor arena in the Friedrichshain neighborhood of Berlin, Germany, that opened in September 2008. Developed by Anschutz Entertainment Group, it was named O2 World, when O2 Germany purchased the naming rights.[5] With a capacity of 17,000 people,[6] 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. The surrounding area will be filled with various entertainment venues including a cinema, a casino, a hotel and various bars and restaurants.[5] The arena hosted the 2008–09 Euroleague Final four.[7] 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.
The LED construction grid on the facade of the arena will be equipped with more than 300,000 LED clusters on a 12 m (39 ft) high and approximately 120 m (390 ft) wide section of the semicircular 105° glass facade with a total area of more than 1,440 m2 (15,500 sq ft). Light pixels, consisting of two groups of 19 LEDs (colour palette: 16.7 million RGB colours) will be attached to the vertical bracing of the facade. The vertical distances are 0.20 m (7.9 in) and the horizontal distances between the axes are planned to be 0.90 m (2 ft 11 in).
In January 2015 German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz announced it had reached a deal with the arena management to rename the venue Mercedes-Benz Arena Berlin starting 1 July 2015. According to Mercedes-Benz the naming deal will last 20 years, and will also include some changes to the arena's interior design. Between 2008 and 2015 the arena was known as O2 World Berlin due to sponsorship contract with Telefónica Germany, a telecommunications company.
References
- ↑ O2 World Berlin architect: Populous
- ↑ O2 World Berlin Germany architect: JSK Architects
- ↑ Worldstadiums.com basketball capacity 14,500.
- ↑ Euroleague.net "the 16,000-seat o2 World".
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Startschuss für die O2 World in Berlin, 27 April 2006 (German)
- ↑ Data and facts about O2 World 30 September 2008 (German)
- ↑ Euroleague Basketball, AEG Announce Global Partnership Agreement
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