Arena Birmingham
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Redirect Template:Redirect Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox venue Utilita Arena Birmingham (previously known as Arena Birmingham, The Barclaycard Arena, originally as the National Indoor Arena and still commonly called The NIA) is an indoor arena and sporting venue in central Birmingham, England. It is owned by parent company the NEC Group. When it was opened in 1991, it was the largest indoor arena in the UK.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The arena is located alongside the Birmingham Canal Navigations Main Line's Old Turn Junction and opposite the National Sea Life Centre in Brindleyplace. The building straddles the main Birmingham to Wolverhampton Intercity railway line (originally the Stour Valley Line), but does not have a station of its own. There are three adjoining car parks with a total of 2,156 spaces. Close to the arena is The ICC which is also owned by the NEC Group.
It is currently the fourth-largest indoor arena in the United Kingdom by capacity. In 2019, the arena had ticket sales of 530,597, which was the 4th highest in the United Kingdom.<ref name="top2019">Template:Cite web</ref>
Background
The arena was officially opened, as the National Indoor Arena, on 4 October 1991 by the athlete Linford Christie.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> When it was opened, the arena was intended to be an indoor sporting venue.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> However, the venue began to host entertainment events shortly after opening.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The arena currently hosts a variety of events including concerts, sporting events and conferences.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It has a capacity of up to 15,800 using both permanent seating and temporary seating configurations.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The arena was renamed after it underwent an extensive renovation which was completed at the end of 2014. Michael Bublé opened the renovated arena on 2 December 2014.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 2018 the arena had ticket sales of 497,443, which was the 4th highest in the United Kingdom.<ref name="top2018">Template:Cite web</ref>
Naming history
- National Indoor Arena Template:Small<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Barclaycard Arena Template:Small<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Arena Birmingham Template:Small
- Utilita Arena Birmingham Template:Small
Renovation
In 2012 plans to refurbish and renovate the NIA were approved by Birmingham City Council. The plans included creating a showpiece entrance from the canal-side, three "sky needle" light sculptures, a new glazed facade fronting the canal and new pre-show hospitality elements. The design was by the architecture firm Broadway Malyan and the building contract was awarded to Royal BAM Group in 2013 with a projected finishing date of Winter 2014.<ref name=NIA2>Template:Cite news</ref>
The £26 million redevelopment began in June 2013. The redeveloped arena was officially opened with a performance by singer Michael Bublé on 2 December 2014.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It was renamed the "Barclaycard Arena" in November 2014 after Barclaycard won the naming rights for five years,<ref>[1] Template:Webarchive</ref> but in May 2016 it was announced that the naming deal would end early,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and from September 2017 it would be named Arena Birmingham.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
On 16 January 2020, it was announced that the arena will be renamed Utilita Arena Birmingham from 15 April 2020.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Notable events
The arena has been used for several major events in the past, including counting no fewer than eight constituencies in the hall for the 1992 general election.<ref name="Election 1992">Election 92, BBC, 9 April 1992</ref>
- Gladiators was recorded at the arena from 1992 to 1999.
- 1993 IBF World Championships
- 1995 Netball World Championships
- Eurovision Song Contest 1998<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- 1999 World Judo Championships
- 1999 WWF Rebellion.
- The 2001 Robot Wars Live Tour.
- 2003 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
- Great Britain Davis Cup tennis matches (vs. United States in 1999, vs. Sweden and Thailand in 2002, and vs. Japan in 2016)
- BBL Cup and BBL Finals Weekend matches
- 2003 IBF World Championships
- 2007 European Athletics Indoor Championships.
- The Premier League Darts every year since 2007
- 2010 European Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships
- 2010 European Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships
- 2010 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship
- 2011 Trampoline World Championships
- Lee Evans performed here from 17 to 21 September 2014 to record his final stand-up show tour Monsters before his retirement.
- Linkin Park performed here as part of the One More Light Tour on 6 July 2017. This was the band's last performance of the European leg, as the remaining show in Manchester were cancelled due to a bombing at the Manchester Arena, where the band was supposed to perform. It was also the final performance of lead singer Chester Bennington before his death on 20 July 2017.<ref>"Watch Linkin Park Perform With Chester Bennington for the Last Time". Billboard. Retrieved 21 July 2017</ref>
- 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships
- 2022 Commonwealth Games
- Billie Eilish played her debut show here as part of her Happier Than Ever: The World Tour on July 15th 2022.
- Monster Jam Ramped Up made its worldwide debut on 29-31 March 2024, featuring the all new Monstergon.
- Tyler, The Creator played here for his first UK show of his CHROMAKOPIA Tour on the 17th May 2025.
Ticket sales
| Year | Name | Ticket sales | Gross sales (USD) | Worldwide rank | UK rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Arena Birmingham | 530,597<ref name="top2019" /> | 40,489,480 | 36 | 4 |
| 2018 | 497,443<ref name="top2018"/> | 29 | 4 | ||
| 2017 | 642,922<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 17 | 5 | ||
| 2016 | Barclaycard Arena | 422,619<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 31 | 4 | |
| 2015 | 425,241<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 36 | 9 |
NEC Group
Parent company The NEC Group also owns and operates the ICC Birmingham in central Birmingham, and the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) and bp pulse LIVE (previously Resorts World Arena, Genting Arena and LG Arena), based on The NEC site in nearby Solihull.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
References
External links
- Pages with broken file links
- Basketball venues in England
- Indoor arenas in England
- Sports venues in Birmingham, West Midlands
- Badminton venues
- Indoor track and field venues
- Darts venues
- Sports venues completed in 1991
- 1991 establishments in England
- Judo venues
- Netball venues in England
- 2022 Commonwealth Games venues
- Gymnastics at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
- Music venues in Birmingham, West Midlands
- Music venues completed in 1991