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Lyon’s LDLC Arena gets up and running

France’s biggest indoor arena outside of Paris is set to host up to 120 events per year, including concerts, after opening last month.

The Populous-designed LDLC Arena in Lyon, which has an adjustable capacity ranging from 6,000 to 16,000, opened to the public on the 23 November with a Euroleague basketball game between LDLC ASVEL and FC Bayern Munich.

It has gigs lined up by artists including Sting, Eric Clapton, Calogero, Jonas Brothers, Grand Corps Malade, Slimane and Green Day. Populous previously designed Lyon’s 60,000-cap Groupama Stadium, home of football club Olympique Lyonnais.

“We’re excited to deliver our second venue for Lyon alongside Olympique Lyonnais Groupe,” says Francois Clement, senior principal and leader of Populous’ business operations in France. “Leading on the arena and interior design with our interiors practice, Jump Studios, Populous was able to extend the Groupe’s ambitious OL Valley venture by providing a venue that responds to the local community.”

Lyon – the second largest metropolitan area in France, and the focal point of the south-eastern region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes – has long had a claim to be France’s second most important market.

“Set to attract some of the best talent in live entertainment, LDLC Arena will become a cultural hub and a significant asset to the city.” adds Clement.

“Arenas are attracting more and more attention when it comes to sustainability”

Sustainability has been “at the heart” of the design process according to Populous, which optimised the layout of the internal spaces to minimise the footprint of the building, thus reducing the volume of building materials needed. The shell of the venue comprises an innovative double skin, which helps regulate the temperature within the arena and minimise the need for climate control systems.

The arena generates its energy with 5,500 sqm of photovoltaic panels on the main roof. In the public area surrounding the venue, 30% of the total area will be green space, with the scheme to include hundreds of mature trees and a large bird reservation to the north of the site.

“Arenas are attracting more and more attention when it comes to sustainability,” adds Elizabeth Miglierina, LDLC project lead at Populous. “Designing LDLC Arena, a large-scale, ambitious building in one of the biggest French cities, demonstrates Populous’ commitment to delivering best-in-class venues with a reduced impact on our environment. As designers, we are sharing our vision of creating spaces for people and the planet.”

Olympique Lyonnais Groupe (OL Groupe) signed a deal with Live Nation in 2021 to develop the Lyon arena, extending the pact that began in 2016 with the opening of the Groupama Stadium. The partnership has brought artists such as Rihanna, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran to the stadium.

Elsewhere, Live Nation France has announced that DJ Snake has sold out his headline concert at the 80,000-cap Stade de France in Saint-Denis in a matter of minutes. The Paris-born DJ and music producer, who previously sold out the 60,000-cap Parc des Princes in the French capital in 2022, will perform at the stadium on 10 May 2025.

Click here to read IQ‘s recent City Focus on Lyon.

 


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City focus: Lyon

Lyon’s international touring profile has undoubtedly gone up a notch or two as the city awaits its new LDLC Arena, but the historic city – the second largest metropolitan area in France, and the focal point of the south-eastern region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes – has long had a claim to be France’s second most important market.

“Outside Paris, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes has always been the leading ticketing market in France,” says Rémi Perrier of veteran promoter RPO, based in nearby Grenoble and a frequent client of Lyon’s venues. “Lyon is the capital of this region and has always been a stronghold for all types of music and also culture in general. The LDLC Arena will further strengthen this position of strength.”

As well as the city’s 520,000-strong population and its broader metropolitan total of more than 2.3m, Lyon’s catchment stretches across more than one border. “Lyon serves many nearby cities as far as Geneva or Turin,” says Thierry Pilat, director-general of La Halle Tony-Garnier, the historic 16,800-capacity concert hall. “It is a very beautiful city with prestigious cultural facilities and original events such as the Biennale de la Danse and the Nuits Sonores festival for electronic music. It is internationally renowned for its gastronomy, too, so it attracts a lot of city-breakers.”

“It is a great city,” concurs AEG Presents head Arnaud Meersseman, once a student at Lyon’s Sciences Po university. “It’s big but not too big. It is one of the big regional markets.”

“Our objective is to book 60 musical shows each year”

Olympique Lyonnais Groupe (OL Groupe) signed a deal with Live Nation in 2021 to develop the new 16,000-capacity LDLC Arena in Lyon, extending the pact that began in 2016 with the opening of the Groupama Stadium, which provides a home for football club Olympique Lyonnais and can contain crowds of up to 73,000 in certain configurations.

The new arena is scheduled for completion towards the end of 2023 and will host around 100-120 events a year including concerts, sporting events and eSports.

“We have chosen to work on a U-shape design with our architect agency, Populous, to give priority to a premium fan experience on live music shows,” says Xavier Pierrot, OL Groupe deputy general director, in charge of the Groupama Stadium and the LDLC Arena. “So far, we have booked a few French artists in 2024: Slimane, Shaka Ponk. Our objective is to book 60 musical shows each year. We are aiming to work on a large range of musical shows, with our non-exclusive partner Live Nation and all the major bookers.”

Artists such as Rihanna, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran have all visited the Groupama in recent years, with Muse, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Depeche Mode and Mylène Farmer coming between May and July.

“This summer is a bit special with no international sport events scheduled, apart from the World Supercross Championship in July,” says Pierrot. “So, we have this very large window allowing a total of six concerts. This is truly a busy season, and we have one more international artist to be revealed in the coming days.”

“In 2023 and 2024, the outlook is good, with a large volume of French artists”

Local promoters are well aware of their good fortune. “In 2022, we had the pleasure of working on four concerts at Groupama Stadium: Indochine, Soprano, Rammstein, and The Rolling Stones – two postponements and two normal tours,” says Perrier. “In 2023 and 2024, the outlook is good, with a large volume of French artists, mainly in urban music.” As for the new arena, says Perrier, “we are incredibly lucky. It will change the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes market.”

Outside Paris, France’s touring business depends on scores of local and regional promoters working hard on the ground, and those operating in and around Lyon also include Totaal Rez, Eldorado & Co, Les Derniers Couchés, and Arachneé Concerts.
For such promoters, keeping regional cities top of mind for bigger touring acts is a skill unto itself.

“The challenge for us is to maintain a very good relationship with the agents of major artists,” says Perrier. “We are fortunate to have established a relationship of trust. We must keep it and be attentive to newcomers to this market, which is also changing because new players are arriving, which is a very good thing.”

No city cements a musical reputation without its fair share of grassroots venues. In addition to renowned clubs such as the Transbordeur and the new Marché Gare, Lyon is the birthplace of French micro-brewery and entertainment chain Ninkasi. Its flagship Ninkasi Gerland, in Rue Marcel Mérieux, is a serious live music draw, with two venues: the 735-cap Kao and the 400-cap Kafe.

“The Lyon scene is really huge. We have a lot of good bands and DJs, a lot of nice venues and festivals”

“The Lyon scene is really huge,” says Fabien Hyvernaud, director general of Ninkasi Musiques. “We have a lot of good bands and DJs, a lot of nice venues and festivals. In September 2022, our friends at Marché Gare opened their new venue and it’s awesome. In 2023, the famous electronic festival Nuits Sonores are going to celebrate their 20th birthday. We still have a lot of small venues like Sonic, Periscope and Farmer, who have a lot of gigs in jazz, punk, and experimental music.”

Ninkasi’s own 2022 was reasonably strong, though Hyvernaud notes that there are headwinds for smaller venues. “A lot of gigs from 2020/2021 were postponed to last year, so when we could start to have standing concerts again, we had a lot of bands – mostly national and local ones because travelling was still difficult for foreign bands.

“2023 seems to be more difficult. A lot of big artists will not travel and a lot of them are postponing their albums. So, our first trimester looks like a desert, but we will have a lot of artistic residencies for our Ninkasi Musik Lab project, where we help local bands to be more professional.”

Hyvernaud also has a bombshell: “We’re going to destroy Ninkasi Gerland at the end of October 2023,” he says. “Ninkasi Gerland and the Kafe stage will be rebuilt but without the biggest room, Ninkasi Kao. We are working on another project close to Lyon, which should be open in 2026. That’s a huge decision for us, and it will have a huge impact on our local cultural landscape.”

In this era of bonanza sales for bigger shows, it goes without saying that Lyon has been filling its boots, not least at Halle Tony-Garnier.

“2022 was a big year with more than 450,000 spectators, and 2023 will also be very busy,” says Pilat. “At this stage, it is mainly acts from the French scene who are filling the halls. Stromae will perform four concerts to more than 60,000 spectators in our hall, and [revived French-Canadian cyberpunk rock opera] Starmania will play eight complete performances. The schedule is full, although from this point on, we also expect more international tours.”

 


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Live Nation partners on 16,000-cap arena for France

Live Nation has signed a new deal with Olympique Lyonnais Groupe to develop a new 16,000-capacity arena in France.

The Lyon-Decines arena will be located on the Olympique Lyonnais valley site in Lyon, and is on track for completion at the end of 2023.

According to the companies, the new venue will host around 100 events per year including concerts, sporting events and eSports.

The deal extends Live Nation’s existing relationship with OL Groupe which first launched in 2016 with the opening of the Groupama Stadium (cap. 59,186) in Lyon.

The partnership has brought artists such as Rihanna, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran to the stadium.

“We’re proud to bring a new arena to Lyon that will make it front and centre for live entertainment”

Angelo Gopee, MD Live Nation France, says: “France is a country that lives and breathes music and entertainment, and we’re proud to bring a new arena to Lyon that will make it front and centre for live entertainment by opening up a whole new touring market.”

Jean-Michel Aulas, CEO Olympique Lyonnais, adds: “This agreement with one of the world’s leaders in musical entertainment is a long-term one and breathes life into the OL Valley Arena project. We are extremely honoured to have Live Nation alongside us, enabling our city to welcome high-quality international stars who will draw in spectators not only from Lyon but also from the surrounding region and beyond.”

Live Nation adds the Lyon-Decines arena to its global portfolio of 200+ venues – which recently expanded with the addition of a new 20,000-capacity arena in São Paulo, Brazil.

 


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Hundreds of French venues hit by coronavirus event ban

The French Ministry of Health has imposed a ban on all gatherings of over 5,000 people in “confined” spaces, following similar measures affecting the live music market in Italy and Switzerland.

Health minister Olivier Véran announced the ban on Saturday (29 February), which also forbids any events in the northern region of l’Oise and Haute Savoie in the southeast of the country, with “the aim of limiting the spread of covid-19”. 130 cases of the virus have currently been reported in France.

According to French live music industry association Prodiss, the ban will affect “hundreds of venues” in the country and “thousands of cultural events”. Prodiss has called a crisis meeting with the ministries of health and culture to talk over the decision.

The 20,300-capacity Accorhotels Arena in the French capital of Paris cancelled yesterday’s Juste Debout hip-hop dance competition.

However, directors of the Zenith Paris – La Villette (6,293) have announced that “no concerts will be cancelled in the next 15 days”, subject to possible changes in government regulations. This means concerts by Caravan Palace (7 March), Debout Citoyennes (8 March), Papa Roach and Hollywood Undead (13 March) and Claudio Capéo (14 March) will take place as planned.

The French Ministry of Health has imposed a ban on all gatherings of over 5,000 people in “confined” spaces

Shows at Zénith Toulouse Métropole (11,000-cap.) are also going ahead as scheduled.

At the Zénith De Strasbourg Europe (12,079-cap.), a number of concerts which “do not fall under the cancellation conditions” are still going ahead. The fate of an upcoming show by French singer M Pokora (7 March) will be confirmed “this evening or tomorrow”, while a Top Music Live show has been postponed.

A James Blunt concert taking place tonight at the Halle Tony-Garnier in Lyon (17,000-cap.) is going ahead as planned.

It has yet to be confirmed whether upcoming events including La Nuit de la Bretagne (7 March) will take place at the Paris la Défense Arena, as directors wait for local government to make a decision.

Elsewhere, Green Day became the latest act to cancel upcoming shows in Asia due to coronavirus-related concerns. The decision follows the cancellation of concerts by K-pop stars BTS in South Korea last week.

 


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