Article originally posted on CoStar on December 18, 2024
City officials are spending millions to upgrade a sports-focused stadium outside Phoenix as new and high-end venues across the country grow in popularity.
The city of Glendale, Arizona, is spending $42 million to transform the Desert Diamond Arena from a traditional sports arena into a premier “music mecca” and entertainment destination by spring 2025, according to a statement.
The updates aim to create “a destination that can draw audiences from across the region and beyond,” from music fans and sports enthusiasts to travelers seeking world-class entertainment options, said Doug Thornton, ASM Global executive vice president of arenas, stadiums and theaters, in a statement. Los Angeles-based ASM Global manages the property for the city. Desert Diamond Arena is the latest sports venue to upgrade seats and VIP spaces to attract more visitors and draw top-tier acts and events. (Desert Diamond Arena)
ASM Global will add more VIP bars, restaurants and boxes, plus new sound and video technology to the arena to help the 21-year-old venue compete with the newest venues nationwide to attract top-tier events.
Demand for live events has surged well beyond pre-pandemic levels, with ticket sales for the top 100 touring artists soaring 72% from $5.54 billion in 2019, the last full year of touring before the COVID-19 pandemic, to $9.5 billion this year, despite a 3.9% increase in average ticket prices, according to Pollstar.
Meanwhile, attendance at live music events that used Ticketmaster jumped 20% year-over-year to 145 million people in 2023, according to the ticketing service.
Staying competitive
Desert Diamond Arena, home to the Professional Bull Riders team Arizona Ridge Riders and Arizona Rattlers Arena Football team, can hold up to 19,000 spectators. It was the longtime home of the Arizona Coyotes hockey team until 2022 when the team left town.
The arena is connected to the 250-acre, mixed-use Westgate Entertainment District at 9400 W. Maryland Ave. that includes a casino, State Farm Stadium, 13 hotels, bars, restaurants, and experiential retail.
Venues across the country are spending money to stay competitive. The Rose Bowl in Los Angeles has budgeted $80 million on upgrades, while stadium and concert venue operator Live Nation Entertainment expects to spend about $525 million in venue upgrades this year.
ASM Global said it will apply lessons learned from this project to its other managed venues across the country, including the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, The Moscone Center in San Francisco and The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles.
The Phoenix hospitality sector is healthy despite a large supply of new space having opened since the pandemic, according to CoStar data. Occupancy is 72.2%, up slightly from 71.2% a year ago. The average daily rate has climbed 3.2% year on year in Phoenix, according to Costar data.
