OAK VIEW GROUP SETTING ROOTS IN MANCHESTER

Oak View Group has revealed plans to build the biggest arena in the U.K. in Manchester. If approved, the venue will have a capacity of 23,500; the projected building cost is £350m ($447m).

A planning application will be submitted to Manchester City Council within the coming weeks. Should it be approved, OVG says the venue is projected to open in 2023 after a three-year building period.

The proposed arena is situated on wasteland next to the Etihad Stadium in East Manchester, and will host music events as well as sports and other entertainment. Oak View hope it could entice the BRIT Awards to move from The O2 Arena to outside of London for the first time, according to the Guardian.

"Our new venue would attract a wider range of the world's most exciting events and create thousands of skilled jobs, genuine community opportunities, and significant economic benefits,” said Tim Leiweke, co-founder and Chief Exec of Oak View Group. “It would place Manchester on the global entertainment map for decades to come.”

The new arena will be bigger than the proposed MSG Sphere in London, which is being built by the Madison Square Garden Company, whose partner, Irving Azoff, is an owner of Oak View. Rival venue Manchester Arena, where the terrorist attack occurred at Ariana Grande’s concert in 2017, is currently the biggest arena in the U.K. with a capacity of 21k, followed by The O2 with 20k.