Michelob Ultra Arena
Coordinates: 36°5′26.44″N 115°10′44.33″W / 36.0906778°N 115.1789806°W
The Michelob Ultra Arena, formerly the Mandalay Bay Events Center, is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada.[1] It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts International, and was opened on April 10, 1999. MGM and brewing company Anheuser-Busch entered a naming-rights agreement in 2021, naming the arena after the company's Michelob Ultra beer.[2]
Interior of venue during Evo 2017 | |
Michelob Ultra Arena Location within Nevada Michelob Ultra Arena Location within the United States | |
| Former names | Mandalay Bay Events Center (1999–2021) |
|---|---|
| Address | 3950 S Las Vegas Blvd |
| Location | Paradise, Nevada |
| Owner | MGM Resorts International |
| Type | Arena |
| Capacity | 12,000 |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1998 |
| Opened | April 10, 1999 |
| Tenants | |
| Las Vegas Aces (WNBA) (2018–present) Las Vegas Desert Dogs (NLL) (2022–present) | |
| Website | |
| Venue website | |
It is the home arena for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association and the Las Vegas Desert Dogs of the National Lacrosse League. The arena also hosts a variety of music, sports, and entertainment events.
History
The facility opened as the Mandalay Bay Events Center on April 10, 1999, with a performance by opera singer Luciano Pavarotti.[3] It was his first Las Vegas concert since 1985.[3][4] The facility opened a month after the Mandalay Bay resort, and included a 30,218 sq ft (2,807.3 m2) floor.[5] The venue was originally planned to include 8,000 seats, but boxing promoter Bob Arum convinced Mandalay Resort Group to increase this to 12,000.[6] The Mandalay Bay Events Center gave Las Vegas its third musical arena, joining the Thomas & Mack Center and the MGM Grand Garden Arena.[7]
MGM Mirage acquired Mandalay Resort Group and the venue in 2005, and was later renamed MGM Resorts International. Around 2014, MGM considered turning the facility into a theater, before deciding to build the Park Theater instead.[8] In February 2021, the venue was renamed Michelob Ultra Arena, through a partnership with brewing company Anheuser-Busch. It is named after the company's Michelob Ultra beer.[9][10]
Sports
The arena hosts boxing matches, including the high-profile Amir Khan vs. Zab Judah Light welterweight title unification, match on July 23, 2011.
As of July 2018, the Mandalay Bay Events Center has held 31 Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events, starting with UFC 33, and most recently, UFC Fight Night 88. It held the largest UFC weigh-in show in history in conjunction with International Fight Week 2012 ahead of UFC 148 welcoming 10,000 fans.[11] UFC cards in Vegas have since moved to T-Mobile Arena as part of a comprehensive marketing and tenancy agreement.
The 999th episode of WWE Raw was held at the arena on July 16, 2012, the first time the WWE performed at Mandalay Bay.
The first National Basketball Association game on the Las Vegas Strip since 1981 was at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on October 6, 2012, a preseason contest between the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers. The teams returned for preseason games in 2013 and 2014.[12][13] In 2016, it hosted the NCAA Men's basketball postseason tournament Vegas 16. The NBA and WNBA officially announced on October 17, 2017, that the San Antonio Stars would relocate from San Antonio, Texas, and would be playing at the Mandalay Bay Events Center starting in the 2018 season as the Las Vegas Aces. They played their first home game on May 27, 2018.[14]
The 2016 Spring North American League of Legends Championship Series Finals were hosted at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on April 16 and 17, 2016.
Since 2016, the Evolution Championship Series fighting game tournament has held its final day of competition at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.
The WNBA All-Star Game and related All-Star events were held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on July 26 and 27, 2019.
Entertainment events
| Entertainment events held at Michelob Ultra Arena | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Nationalities | Artists | Events | Supporting Acts | Attendance | Box Office |
| 1999 | ||||||
| August 11 | Germany | Scorpions | Eye to Eye Tour | Mötley Crüe | ||
| September 24 | United States Canada | Tori Amos | 5 ½ Weeks Tour | |||
| November 11 | Puerto Rico | Ricky Martin | Livin' la Vida Loca Tour | Jessica Simpson | ||
| November 12 | ||||||
| December 7 | United States | ZZ Top | XXX Tour | Screamin' Cheetah Wheelies | ||
| Lynyrd Skynyrd | Edge of Forever Tour | |||||
| December 28 | Eagles | The Millenium Concerts | Jackson Browne | |||
| December 29 | ||||||
| 2000 | ||||||
| March 17 | United States | Kiss | Farewell Tour | Ted Nugent | ||
| May 5 | REO Speedwagon | Arch Allies | ||||
| 2001 | ||||||
| July 13 | United States | Reba McEntire | Girls' Night Out' Tour | Sara Evans, Jamie O'Neal, Carolyn Dawn | ||
| August 31 | Destiny’s Child | MTV's TRL Tour | ||||
| 2002 | ||||||
| March 2 | United States | Aaron Carter | Aaron's Winter Party | |||
| April 20 | The Offspring | Conspiracy of One Tour | Social Distortion | |||
| May 24 | Britney Spears | Dream Within a Dream Tour | ||||
| May 25 | ||||||
| December 8 | United Kingdom | Def Leppard | X Tour | |||
| 2003 | ||||||
| February 15 | Germany | Scorpions | Scorpions Tour 2003 | Dokken | ||
| June 14 | United States | Kenny Chesney | Margaritas N' Senoritas Tour | Montgomery Gentry | ||
| August 20 | ZZ Top | Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers Tour | Franky Perez | |||
| October 8 | Red Hot Chili Peppers | By the Way tour | The Flaming Lips | |||
| 2004 | ||||||
| April 16 | United States | Alicia Keys | The Verizon Ladies First Tour | |||
| April 17 | Kid Rock | Rock N' Roll Pain Train Tour | Jerry Cantrell | |||
| May 29 | Prince | Musicology Live 2004ever | ||||
| May 30 | ||||||
| August 6 | Van Halen | Summer Tour 2004 | Shinedown | |||
| August 7 | ||||||
| 2005 | ||||||
| June 17 | United States | Brad Paisley | Two Hats and a Redhead Tour | Terri Clark | ||
| July 9 | United Kingdom | Judas Priest | Retribution Tour | Queensrÿche | ||
| August 27 | United States | Backstreet Boys | Never Gone Tour | |||
| 2006 | ||||||
| May 25 | Various | 2006 VH1 Rock Honors | ||||
| June 16 | United States | Kenny Chesney | The Road and the Radio Tour | Dierks Bentley | ||
| August 12 | Colombia | Shakira | Oral Fixation Tour | — | — | — |
| August 18 | United Kingdom | Def Leppard | Yeah! Tour | Journey | ||
| December 29 | United States | The Black Eyed Peas | The Monkey Business Tour | — | — | — |
| 2007 | ||||||
| December 8 | United Kingdom | Spice Girls | The Return of the Spice Girls | — | — | — |
| December 9 | ||||||
| December 11 | ||||||
| 2009 | ||||||
| May 23 | United States | Taylor Swift | Fearless Tour | Gloriana Kellie Pickler | 8,311 / 8,311 | $551,051 |
| September 26 | Britney Spears | The Circus Starring : Britney Spears | Jordin Sparks | 18,799 | $1,712,858 | |
| September 27 | ||||||
| December 29 | The Black Eyed Peas | The E.N.D. World Tour | — | — | — | |
| December 30 | ||||||
| 2010 | ||||||
| October 16 | Colombia | Shakira | The Sun Comes Out World Tour | — | — | — |
| 2011 | ||||||
| July 2 | Barbados | Rihanna | Loud Tour | J. Cole K.T | — | — |
| September 15 | United States | Kid Rock | Born Free Tour | Sheryl Crow | ||
| November 19 | United States | Katy Perry | California Dreams Tour | Ellie Goulding | ||
| December 3 | — | Cirque de Soleil | Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour | — | 140,019 / 260,640 | $14,475,909 |
| December 4 | ||||||
| December 9 | ||||||
| December 11 | ||||||
| December 17 | ||||||
| December 18 | ||||||
| December 19 | ||||||
| December 27 | ||||||
| 2012 | ||||||
| August 18 | United States | Jennifer Lopez Enrique Iglesias | Enrique Iglesias & Jennifer Lopez Tour | Frankie J | 8,066 / 8,066 | $1,223,438 |
| 2013 | ||||||
| February 15 | United States | Pink | Truth About Love Tour | The Hives | 9,511 / 9,511 | $1,033,984 |
| March 15 | United States | Alicia Keys | Set the World on Fire Tour | Miguel | — | — |
| April 12 | Barbados | Rihanna | Diamonds World Tour | ASAP Rocky | 8,861 / 8,861 | $1,047,675 |
| August 2 | United Kingdom | One Direction | Take Me Home Tour | 5 Seconds of Summer | — | — |
| August 3 | ||||||
| 2014 | ||||||
| June 6 | United States | Lionel Richie | All the Hits, All Night Long | CeeLo Green | — | — |
| October 12 | Spain | Enrique Iglesias | Sex and Love Tour | Pitbull | 9,808 / 9,808 | $1,168,307 |
| 2015 | ||||||
| August 15 | United States | Kelly Clarkson | Piece by Piece Tour[15] | Pentatonix Eric Hutchinson Abi Ann | — | — |
| August 29 | United States | Ariana Grande | The Honeymoon Tour | Prince Royce | — | — |
| October 2 | South Korea | BIGBANG | Made World Tour[16] | — | 9,000 | — |
| 2016 | ||||||
| January 9[17] | United Kingdom | Muse | Drones World Tour[18][19][20] | Phantogram | — | — |
| February 13 | United States | Black Sabbath | The End Tour[21][22][23][24] | Rival Sons | 8,555 / 9,283 | $962,808 |
| February 28 | United Kingdom | Iron Maiden | The Book of Souls World Tour[25][26][27][28] | The Raven Age | 9,000 / 9,000 | $862,872 |
| April 9 | United Kingdom | Ellie Goulding | Delirium World Tour[29][30][31] | Bebe Rexha Broods | 7,998 / 7,998 | — |
| April 29 | Barbados | Rihanna | Anti World Tour[32][33] | Travis Scott[34] | 16,220 / 16,419 | $1,673,817 |
| April 30 | ||||||
| May 6 | United States | Selena Gomez | Revival Tour[35][36] | DNCE Bea Miller | 8,761 / 9,173 | $594,878 |
| 2017 | ||||||
| February 18 | United States | Twenty One Pilots | Emotional Roadshow World Tour[37] | Judah & the Lion Jon Bellion | 8,681 / 8,681 | $418,029 |
| March 24 | United States | Panic! at the Disco | Death of a Bachelor Tour[38][39] | MisterWives Saint Motel | 8,845 / 8,845 | $463,599 |
| October 14 | United States | Janet Jackson | State of the World Tour[40] | DJ Aktive | 7,583 / 8,077 | $931,996 |
| October 22 | Canada | Arcade Fire | Infinite Content Tour[41] | Angel Olsen | TBA | TBA |
| 2018 | ||||||
| February 16 | United States | Lana Del Rey | LA to the Moon Tour[42] | Kali Uchis | 8,880 / 9,210 | $794,687 |
| March 24 | United States | Kid Rock | American Rock n Roll | A Thousand Horses | ||
| June 9 | United States | Kesha Macklemore | The Adventures of Kesha and Macklemore[43] | Wes Period | 7,465 / 8,087 | $378,260 |
Rock band Journey performed at the arena in December 2000 which was filmed for the Journey 2001 DVD.
VH1 held the first two Rock Honors ceremonies in this facility in 2006 and 2007.
It was the host of Yanni's Yanni Live! The Concert Event, in 2006.
The arena hosted Crüe Fest on August 1, 2008.
It played host to 311's biennial 3-11 Day concert on March 11, 2010. The band played four sets with 60 songs total.
The arena hosted the 2010 revival of the Lilith Fair on July 9.
On August 23, 2010 the arena served as the venue for Miss Universe 2010 where at the conclusion of the event Ximena Navarrete of Mexico was crowned as the winner.
January 28, 2011, Ozzy Osbourne performed as part of his tour for his new album Let Me Hear You Scream.
The cast of Glee were there on the first stop on their Glee Live! In Concert! tour on May 21, 2011.
On May 14, 2017 the arena hosted Miss USA 2017 pageant.[44]
The 25th Billboard Latin Music Awards was held in the Events Center on April 26, 2018.[45]
Latin Grammy Awards
The arena has hosted the Latin Grammy Awards seven times. The Latin Grammys were held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in 2007 and from 2009 to 2013. The arena hosted the Latin Grammy Awards for a seventh time in 2022[46]
In popular culture
Footage of a boxing match between Oscar De La Hoya and Oba Carr, taking place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, was used in the 1999 film Play It to the Bone.[47] The final boxing match in the 2006 film Rocky Balboa was also filmed at the venue.[10][48][49]
References
- ^ "Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, Las Vegas". www.mandalaybay.com. Retrieved June 18, 2009.
- ^ "Mandalay Bay Events Center now named Michelob ULTRA Arena". KLAS-TV. February 11, 2021.
- ^ a b Paskevich, Michael (April 9, 1999). . Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on May 8, 1999.
- ^ Paskevich, Michael (December 1, 1998). . Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on October 10, 1999.
- ^ . Las Vegas Review-Journal. February 26, 1999. Archived from the original on June 30, 2001.
- ^ Juipe, Dean (March 31, 1998). "Arum influenced arena size". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ Weatherford, Mike (February 5, 1999). . Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on May 24, 2001.
- ^ Katsilometes, John (July 27, 2019). "Mandalay Bay Events Center almost didn't become Aces home". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ Radke, Brock (February 11, 2021). "Mandalay Bay venue gets a new name: Michelob Ultra Arena". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Katsilometes, John (February 11, 2021). "Mandalay Bay cracks an Ultra for new venue name". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ "UFC 148 weigh-ins on YouTube". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
- ^ "Clippers opens preseason on Vegas Strip". Orange County Register. June 25, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ Carp, Steve (April 29, 2014). "Mandalay Bay ends business relationship with Clippers". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ "San Antonio Stars moving to Las Vegas, bought by MGM Resorts". FOX Sports. 17 October 2017.
- ^ "Kelly Clarkson performs at Mandalay Bay Events Center at Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino". VegasNews.com - Las Vegas News. 17 August 2015.
- ^ Benjamin, Jeff. "BIGBANG Announce Huge Arena Tour for America This Fall". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-06-28.
- ^ "LAS VEGAS AND SAN DIEGO TOUR UPDATE". December 4, 2015. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
- ^ Marano, Francesco (2015-10-19). "Muse Extend 2015-2016 Tour Dates For "Drones World Tour" Schedule: Ticket Presale Code Info". Zumic. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Chareunsy, Don (2016-01-12). "Review: Muse's spectacle is spectacular at Mandalay Bay". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Prevatt, Mike (2016-01-13). "AN IMPRESSIVE STAGE SHOW ALMOST REDEEMS MUSE FROM ITS PARANOID BOMBAST". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Payne, Chris (2015-09-03). "Black Sabbath Announces 2016 Farewell Tour Dates". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Stapleton, Susan (2015-09-04). "Las Vegas makes the cut for Black Sabbath's 'The End' farewell tour". LA Times. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Giles, Jeff (2015-10-27). "Black Sabbath Extend 'The End' With Summer 2016 U.S. Tour Dates". ultimateclassicrock.com. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Bell, Josh (2016-02-15). "CONCERT REVIEW: BLACK SABBATH BIDS A HEAVY METAL FAREWELL". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Pasbani, Robert (2015-10-01). "IRON MAIDEN Announce US Tour Dates". metalinjection.net. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Cartel, Ralphl (2016-03-01). "Iron Maiden Lands In Las Vegas On 'Book of Souls' Tour". metalshoprocks.com. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Bell, Josh (2016-02-29). "HEAVY METAL LIFERS IRON MAIDEN SOLDIER ON WITH ENTHUSIASM". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Keefer, Case (2016-03-01). "Iron Maiden brings 'Book of Souls' to old, new fans at Mandalay Bay". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ "Ellie Goulding Announces North American Leg of 2016 'Delirium' World Tour: See The Dates". Pop Crush. 2015-11-02. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Varga, George (2015-11-02). "Ellie Goulding sets 2016 'Delirium' U.S. tour dates". The San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Bell, Josh (2016-04-10). "ELLIE GOULDING SPLITS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SIMPLICITY AND SPECTACLE". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ "Global Superstar Rihanna Announces THE ANTI WORLD TOUR Coming to the Mandalay Bay Events Center April 29, 2016". mandalaybay.com. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Keefer, Case (2016-05-01). "Rihanna's strong voice, new album 'Anti' take charge at Mandalay Bay". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Platon, Adelle (2015-11-23). "Tour with Travi$ Scott, Big Sean & The Weeknd". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ Bailey, Alyssa (2016-05-07). "Everything That Happened During the First Night of Selena Gomez's Revival Tour". Ellie. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ . Billboard. October 12, 2016. Archived from the original on October 14, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
- ^ . Billboard. February 28, 2017. Archived from the original on February 28, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
- ^ "Panic! At The Disco In 2017". Pollstar. 2016-09-22. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
- ^ . Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. April 4, 2017. Archived from the original on April 4, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
- ^ Kreps, Daniel (May 1, 2017). "Janet Jackson Announces State of the World Tour". Rolling Stone. United States. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
- ^ "Arcade Fire Announce Infinite Content Tour". Pitchfork. June 2017.
- ^ "Lana Del Rey Announces Tour | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 2017-09-27.
- ^ Reed, Ryan (December 11, 2017). "Kesha, Macklemore Plot Joint 2018 Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
- ^ "FOX Broadcasting Company - Full Episodes, Shows, Schedule". FOX Broadcasting Company - Full Episodes, Shows, Schedule.
- ^ "Jennifer Lopez Will Premiere Song at Billboard Latin Music Awards". Billboard. April 19, 2018. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
- ^ "Latin GRAMMYs To Light Up Las Vegas". GRAMMY.com. 22 April 2013.
- ^ Cling, Carol (May 24, 1999). . Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on May 9, 2001.
- ^ Kantowski, Ron (December 12, 2005). "The tale of the video tape from an up-close viewing of Rocky Balboa boxing match". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
- ^ "Movie Locations Guide: Maps and Directions to Filming Locations". www.movielocationsguide.com. Retrieved June 18, 2009.
External links
- Official website
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Home of the Las Vegas Aces 2018–present | Succeeded by Current Arena |
| Preceded by First Arena | Home of the Las Vegas Desert Dogs 2022–beyond | Succeeded by Current Arena |
| Preceded by | Fed Cup Final Four venue 2000 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Ultimate Fighting Championship venue UFC 33 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Imperial Ballroom at Atlantis Paradise Island | Miss Universe Venue 2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Miss USA Venue 2017 | Succeeded by |