Harry Styles show to launch OVG’s New York arena

Harry Styles has been confirmed as the first music artist to perform at Oak View Group’s new UBS Arena at Belmont Park, New York.

Styles’ show at the 19,000-cap venue, which will be the finale of the his 2021 Love On Tour, will take place on Sunday, 28 November. The concert will spearhead the building’s opening month celebrations, with numerous other events planned throughout November.

Home to the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders, the US$1.1 billion multi-purpose arena will host more than 150 major events annually, with other acts lined up to appear over the coming months including Eric Church, Genesis, Imagine Dragons, Tool, Journey, John Mayer and New Kids on the Block.

UBS Arena intends on being carbon neutral for operations before 2024, which will make it the first arena to do so on the eastern US seaboard.

UBS Arena is poised to become a global landmark entertainment and sports destination

The redevelopment project, which Oak View Group (OVG) is working on in collaboration with the New York Islanders and Sterling Project Development, is expected to create 10,000 construction jobs and 3,000 permanent jobs, generating approximately $25bn in economic activity over the term of the lease.

“UBS Arena is poised to become a global landmark entertainment and sports destination, leading us to partner with one of the world’s premier brands, UBS,” Tim Leiweke, CEO of OVG and leader of the arena project, said earlier this year.

UBS Arena will celebrate its opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony on 19 November, ahead of its official opening with the New York Islanders’ home opener against the Calgary Flames the following day.

Ground was broken on the project on in September 2019 and halted in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Work started back up two months later on 27 May.

Styles has made an investment in OVG’s Co-op Live development in his hometown of Manchester, UK. The development will become the UK’s first all-electric arena when it opens in 2023.

Get more stories like this in your inbox by signing up for IQ Index, IQ’s free email digest of essential live music industry news.