Live Nation Entertainment has agreed to back a planned sports and entertainment district in downtown Atlanta in the US, and will lease a 5,300-capacity live music venue.
First reported by the Wall Street Journal, Live Nation will lease the venue at Centennial Yards, a mixed-use project that is currently under construction next to the Atlanta Hawks basketball team’s State Farm Arena and Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which houses the National Football League’s (NFL) Atlanta Falcons and Major League Soccer (MLS) side Atlanta United FC.
The addition of a Live Nation venue hopes to draw international tours and major headliners to the Georgia capital when it opens its doors. The venue will also be one of Live Nation’s largest indoor theatres, according to WSJ, and is expected to open in 2027.
The 50-acre Centennial Yards project was first announced in 2019, but has faced hurdles around gaining the necessary permits and approvals to develop the land, which was previously used as rail yards. It also took time to get all stakeholders on board, including public officials and landowners.
Spearheaded by development firm CIM Group, the majority of the project is expected to be completed in time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is being co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico. Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which opened in 2017, is set to stage eight matches including three knockout-stage ties and a semi-final.
Aside from agreeing the deal with Live Nation, the last six years has so far seen over 160 apartments and a brewery built, as well as a revamped pedestrian pathway. The developers hope to finish building further apartments, two hotels, 95,000-square-feet of retail space and five restaurants in time for the men’s FIFA World Cup in 2026, which will take place between June 11 and July 19.
Last year, Centennial Yards Company signed a deal with experiential media and immersive technology company Cosm, which announced plans to open a venue. Cosm will create a 70,000-square-foot, three-level entertainment venue, which will deliver live sports and experiential entertainment in shared reality.
“The fact that Live Nation chose to be in downtown Atlanta is a big deal,” CIM’s co-founder and principal Shaul Kuba told WSJ.
“We’re creating a whole new market in Atlanta that really did not exist before.”