£365m Co-op Live arena secures long-term finance deal
The US company behind Manchester’s newest arena – Co-op Live – has secured a new finance deal for the £365m music venue.
Oak View Group (OVG) said the non-recourse financing is a first for a facility without a traditional professional sports anchor tenant.
Co-op Live, the new 23,500 arena set to open in Manchester in late 2023, is located on the Etihad Campus.
It is led by Los Angeles based OVG, with Manchester-based City Football Group (CFG), the global operator of football and sports-related business, as an equal joint venture partner in the venue.
Harry Styles is also an investor in the venue.
Co-op Live is OVG’s first international venue and is 100% privately financed between the debt facilities provided by Apollo, Barings and J.P. Morgan and funding provided by Co-op Live’s shareholders.
The transaction executed with Apollo and Barings is secured by Co-op Live and the cash flow generated by the arena over 27 years.
Francesca Bodie, President of Business Development, Oak View Group, said: “We’re proud to have closed this pioneering financing to help fund the development of Co-op Live, which will deliver one of the world’s best arenas to Manchester.
“It shows the confidence in our business model and ability to deliver on a robust, year-round calendar of unparalleled music and other content.”
The OVG team currently has 11 arena projects under development globally, with scores of sold-out shows at Climate Pledge Arena and UBS Arena since opening last year.
OVG’s Moody Center in Austin, Texas, which is on track to open this year, has already sold $15mm in ticket sales for upcoming events with iconic artists such as Willie Nelson, The Eagles, and Justin Bieber.
