Groundbreaking for CTS Eventim’s new Milan venue
A groundbreaking ceremony has been held for CTS Eventim’s 16,000-cap multi-purpose arena in Milan, Italy, which remains on track to be completed by the end of 2025.
Eventim CEO Klaus-Peter Schulenberg, Milan’s Mayor Giuseppe Sala, and architect Sir David Chipperfield launched the above-ground construction phase on the €180 million Arena for Milan yesterday (28 November).
The project, designed by Sir David Chipperfield and the international design firm Arup, is being positioned to “strengthen Milan’s standing as a global centre of culture, entertainment, and sporting excellence”, while raising “the bar for live entertainment venues”.
“This groundbreaking ceremony marks the next step of an extraordinary journey for Italy’s live entertainment scene,” says Schulenberg. “We extend our sincere thanks to Mayor Sala for his support and dedication to this project. Together with David Chipperfield and Arup, we envision this new landmark as a cultural and sporting hub that will showcase Milan to the world.
“The new arena also aligns perfectly with our venue strategy. Our extensive expertise in managing venues of this caliber will ensure it integrates seamlessly into Milan’s cultural landscape and Eventim’s global live entertainment and ticketing network.”
The venue also promises to reflect Milan’s commitment to sustainability and a greener future via an “innovative design, energy-efficient systems, and responsible resource management”.
“We have worked closely with CTS Eventim and David Chipperfield to design a spectacular venue which has been conceived with ambitious energy efficiency and sustainability targets”
“We are really excited to celebrate this important milestone to launch the project toward its completion,” adds Arup project director Giammichele Melis. “We have worked closely with CTS Eventim and David Chipperfield to design a spectacular venue which has been conceived with ambitious energy efficiency and sustainability targets. Our current statutory site
supervision role gives us the opportunity to keep supporting CTS Eventim and the whole team to see this project through.”
Initially, the arena – part of the Milano Santa Giulia urban development project – will be used for the 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic games after which CTS will continue to operate it.
The venue will compete with the existing 12,700-seat Mediolanum Forum in Assago, near Milan, which has served the city since 1990 and is one of two Italian members of the European Arena Association (EAA). An older open-air venue, the 10,000-capacity Arena Civica, which opened in 1807, is also capable of hosting concerts, as is the 80,000-cap. San Siro stadium.
Eventim’s venue portfolio also includes the Lanxess Arena (cap. 18,000) in Cologne, the KB Hallen (4,500) in Copenhagen, the Waldbühne (22,290) in Berlin and the Eventim Apollo (2,500) in London.
Tours by superstars including Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney and Coldplay helped drive Eventim to strong growth in the first nine months of 2023. Last week, the firm announced it had acquired Punto Ticket in Chile and Teleticket in Peru via its JV with Sony Music Latin Iberia.
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