- The Mandalay Bay Events Center opened in 1999 and has hosted a wide variety of sports and entertainment events.
- The new name is the result of a multi-year naming rights partnership between MGM Resorts and Anheuser-Busch.
- The venue will now be known as the ‘Michelob ULTRA Arena’
In an era when just about every type of sports and entertainment venue is branded it’s somewhat amazing that the Mandalay Bay Events Center lasted over 20 years without having some type of sponsor name attached. Then again, I guess it could be argued that the ‘Mandalay Bay’ is branding for the adjacent Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. At any rate, the 12,000 seat indoor venue that opened in 1999 and has hosted too many concerts, boxing matches, UFC events and more to count now has a new name.
Thanks to a multi-year partnership between MGM Resorts and Anheuser-Busch the venue will now be known as the Michelob ULTRA Arena (yep, that’s how they stylized the ULTRA so don’t blame me for it). Here’s the blurb from the press release announcing the deal:
Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino today announced it has entered into a multi-year naming rights agreement with industry-leading beverage company Anheuser-Busch. The deal, negotiated by MGM Resorts International, will rename the resort’s 12,000-seat sports and entertainment venue in Las Vegas the “Michelob ULTRA Arena.”
The agreement’s integration will feature a variety of assets inside the Michelob ULTRA Arena and at select bars and lounges throughout the property. Anheuser-Busch will have the opportunity to sponsor various activations and exclusive on-property special events through the duration of the agreement.
Chuck Bowling, President and COO for Mandalay Bay, had this to say about the venue’s new branding and the deal with Anheuser-Busch:
“We’re pleased to welcome Anheuser-Busch, a company we have great admiration for, as our naming rights partner at Mandalay Bay. As the leader in the entertainment industry, we look forward to working with the Anheuser-Busch team in our shared commitment to providing guests unforgettable entertainment experiences.”
Matt Davis, Head of U.S. Sports Marketing for Anheuser-Busch, also weighed in on the partnership:
“Las Vegas is one of the world’s most exciting sports and entertainment destinations, and Mandalay Bay is regularly in the midst of all of that excitement. As the world returns to traveling and enjoying entertainment, we look forward to all of the events to come at the Michelob ULTRA Arena.”
Here’s the blurb about the venue from the press release. Note that these aren’t really the events that I’d have highlighted other than the boxing and MMA:
The newly named Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas is one of the industry’s leading destinations for live events, hosting professional and college basketball, major-artist concerts and championship boxing, among others. The arena is home to the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, and has hosted high-profile events including Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events, Latin GRAMMYs, NHL Awards, Latin Billboard Awards, International Swimming League’s world finals, Miss USA pageant, and more.
In 2019, the arena completed a venue refresh with major renovations that enhance the guest event experience, including upgrades to the venue’s seating, concourse and in-arena signage, food and beverage options, locker rooms, technology and lighting system.
As always, this depends on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic but right now the first actual concert scheduled at the Michelob ULTRA Arena will be the mighty MEGADETH with the equally mighty LAMB OF GOD on September 10, 2021:
Before that, the multi-day Psycho Las Vegas event will take place at the ULTRA (that’s what I’m going to call it). Pretty beefy lineup here as well:
Danzig, Mercyful Fate, Emperor, The Flaming Lips, Blue Oyster Cult, Down, Mayhem, Satyricon, Obituary, Warpaint, Blonde Redhead, HEALTH, Watain, Ulver, Katatonia, At the Gates, Poison The Well, Paul Cauthen, Amigo The Devil, Exhorder, Wolves in the Throne Room, Thursday, Pinback, Zola Jesus, Drab Majesty, Boris, Eyehategood, Repulsion, Immolation, Midnight, MGLA, Windhand, Cursive, Tsol, King Dude, Pig Destroyer, Profanatica,Cult of Fire, Intronaut, boysetsfire, Death by Stereo, Curl Up and Die, Adamantium, This Will Destroy You, Khemmis, Mothership, Guantanamo Baywatch, Dengue Fever, Kaelan Mikla, Black Joe Lewis, Fatso Jetson, Wino, Creeping Death, Mephistofeles, Frankie and The Witch Fingers, Toke, Foie Gras, Flavor Crystals, Silvertomb, LordBuffalo, Warish, Alms, Bombers, Glacial Tomb, Relaxer, Black Sabbitch, Hippie Death Cult, Vaelmyst, Mother Mercury, Two Minutes to Late Night
Here’s the iconic IRON MAIDEN playing at the ULTRA (you watch–this will catch on):
