Kombank Arena

Kombank Arena Комбанк арена
Location	New Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
Coordinates	44°48′50.95″N 20°25′16.89″E
Opened	July 31, 2004
Owner	City of Belgrade
Operator	"Arena Beograd" d.o.o.
Construction cost	€70 Million
Architect	Vlada Slavica
Capacity	20,000 - 23,000
Tenants
KK Partizan Serbia national basketball team

The Belgrade Arena (Serbian: Београдска арена / Beogradska arena), for sponsorship reasons also known as Kombank Arena (Serbian Cyrillic: Комбанк арена), is an indoor arena located in Novi Beograd, Belgrade. It is designed as a universal hall for sport, cultural events and other programs. With a total space that covers 48,000 square metres, and an official total capacity of 20,000 seats (for handball, volleyball, basketball and other events), it is one of the largest indoor arenas in the world. Maximum capacity can be up to 23,000, depending on the event being held. Its cost was estimated at €70 million.

History

Belgrade Arena in 2007

In 1989, The City of Belgrade was chosen to host the Basketball World Championship of 1994. However, there was a condition for the city to build an all-new basketball arena. The city government immediately started a competition to find the best design of the new arena that was supposed to have a seat capacity of 20,000. The design submitted by Belgrade architect Vlada Slavica was chosen as the best. In 1991 a location for the project was chosen – Blok 25 in New Belgrade. However the project was already becoming problematic. There were only 3 years left to the World Championships and building this mega structure would have to be done in record time. A team of 126 companies was formed to be part of the arena committee. Two architects were chosen to design the arena's roof. In 1992 construction started as the arena committee formed a partnership with American company HOK that has had lot of experience with building sporting objects. However, tough times were ahead. As the disintegration of Yugoslavia started, the United Nations imposed sanctions on the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and HOK stopped all co-operation with the arena committee. Even with this setback, work on the Belgrade Arena continued.

In 1993, Belgrade suffered one of its worst economic years in modern history. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia experienced record inflation rates, and as a result of the sanctions and the conflicts in Yugoslavia, Belgrade lost the right to host the 1994 Basketball World Championships. Following the formal announcement by FIBA, the arena's construction still continued for some time, though at a considerably slower pace due to the lack of material. However, sometime in 1995 the construction completely stopped. Work on the arena re-commenced in 1998 as the city was chosen to host the 1999 World Table Tennis Championships to be held in the Belgrade Arena. By this time the roof was already taking shape towards completion, part of the façade was done and the interior was half complete. Once again, Yugoslavia lost the privilege to host the competition as the city was bombed by NATO forces the year the competition was supposed to be held. The first public event held in the Arena (which was still under construction at the time) was the final Slobodan Milošević (president of Yugoslavia at the time) 2000 presidential election campaign rally, which was held September 20, 2000. This was the last time Milošević has held a public speech.

After a change of government in Yugoslavia in 2000 and the lifting of all sanctions imposed on the country, the Arena, under new management, was completed in 2004 in time for the FIBA Diamond Ball tournament and Belgrade finally got the right to host The 2005 European Basketball Championship. Temporary licenses for public use expired in early 2006, following a series of sport events and concerts in 2005. Works on an automated fire prevention system and installation of elevators to meet European standards were completed by November 2006, while no events were held in the Arena in the meantime. The Belgrade Arena received its permanent public use license on November 4, 2006 and re-opened its doors as a result. In February 2007, Serbian basketball coach Božidar Maljković started an initiative to name the Arena after another renowned Serbian basketball coach, Aleksandar Nikolić. Maljković presented his initiative to the city officials and the president of Serbia Boris Tadić, but the name change hasn't been accepted.

The Belgrade Arena was given the honour to be the venue of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in May 2008. The Arena was host to the 2 semi-finals and the final as well as dress and performance rehearsals. As a result a new multimedia room with latest technology was opened in February 2008 in order to accommodate the technical team that would be in charge of the Eurovision broadcast.

Belgrade Arena is a member of the European Arenas Association (EAA).

Belgrade Arena during 2012 European Men's Handball Championship

Events

Serbia - Brazil FIVB World League 2009 final, 22,680 spectators

Partizan - Panathinaikos Euroleague 2008–09 Top 16 match, 22,567 spectators

Beyoncé's sold out concert at the opening night of The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour

Main article: List of events held in Belgrade Arena

The first event held in the Belgrade Arena was a Socialist Party of Serbia and Yugoslav Left final election campaign rally, held September 20, 2000 before the 2000 elections in Yugoslavia. The construction of the Arena wasn't finished at that time. The official opening came nearly four years later, July 31, 2004, when the FIBA Diamond Ball basketball tournament was held. Since Arena had only temporary license, only several events were held during the next two and a half years. The first event held after getting permanent license was the 50 Cent concert, on November 6, 2006.

One of the biggest events to take place in the Arena was the Eurovision Song Contest 2008. In the final night of the contest an audience of over 20,000 was present. Other big events held in the Arena include numerous sporting events, notably the European championships in basketball (EuroBasket 2005), volleyball (2005 Men's European Volleyball Championship), table tennis (2007 European Table Tennis Championships), and judo (2007 European Judo Championships). The Belgrade Arena was also one of the 69 venues to take part in the 2009 Summer Universiade Games, hosting the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as the basketball competition. Arena was the host venue for the concerts of the most significant artists of Serbia and former Yugoslavia, as well as major international stars, including 50 Cent, Backstreet Boys, Beyonce, Andrea Bocelli, Montserrat Caballe, Nick Cave, The Chemical Brothers, Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood, Joe Cocker, Leonard Cohen, Phil Collins, The Cult, Bob Dylan, Fatboy Slim, Guano Apes, Guns N' Roses, Hurts, Il Divo, Iron Maiden, Jean Michel Jarre, Elton John, Tom Jones, Judas Priest, Alicia Keys, Mark Knopfler, Lenny Kravitz, Massive Attack, Nicole Scherzinger and The Pussycat Dolls, Queen + Paul Rodgers, Eros Ramazzotti, Jennifer Lopez, Rammstein, Chris Rea, RBD, Rihanna, Sade, Simple Minds, Shakira, Slash, Sting, Whitesnake, Zaz, ZZ Top, and many others. The Arena also hosted the second Green Fest music festival with performances by Franz Ferdinand, Cypress Hill and The Raveonettes, the IQ festival headlined by Marylin Manson, and many other concerts, political rallies, product exhibitions and numerous other events.

Concerts

Date	Performer(s)	Notes
15, 16 October 2005	Zdravko Čolić	Attendance: 40,000
28 October 2005	Phil Collins
14 November 2005	Andrea Bocelli	Attendance: 15,000
6 November 2006	50 Cent
25 December 2006	Bajaga i Instruktori
14 February 2007	Toše Proeski	Attendance: 10,000
8 March 2007	Željko Samardžić	Attendance: 15,000
10 March 2007	Riblja Čorba	Attendance: 17,000
17 April 2007	Busta Rhymes	Attendance: 5,000
20 April 2007	Željko Joksimović
19 May 2007	Van Gogh
1 June 2007	Gipsy Kings
9 June 2007	Bebel Gilberto
13 June 2007	The Chemical Brothers
19 June 2007	Kaiser Chiefs
7 October 2007	Muse	Black Holes and Revelations Tour
9 November 2007	Joe Cocker
18 November 2007	Maceo Parker
24 November 2007	Rihanna	Good Girl Gone Bad Tour
10 December 2007	Miroslav Ilić
23 February 2008	Jose Carreras
4 March 2008	Chris Rea
8 March 2008	Željko Samardžić
20-24 May 2008	Eurovision Song Contest 2008
4 June 2008	Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
9 June 2008	Julio Iglesias
10 June 2008	Mark Knopfler
6 July 2008	Return to Forever
24 July 2008	Lenny Kravitz
7 September 2008	RBD	Empezar desde Cero Tour 2008 Attendance: 15,000
11 October 2008	Alicia Keys	As I Am Tour
29 October 2008	Queen + Paul Rodgers
31 October 2008	Novi Fosili
3 November 2008	Aca Lukas
8 November 2008	Jean Michel Jarre	Attendance: 10,000
8 November 2008	Emir Kusturica and No Smoking Orchestra
18 December 2008	RBD	Gira Del Adios World Tour
10 February 2009	Iron Maiden	Somewhere Back in Time World Tour Attendance: 22,000
14 February 2009	Ennio Morricone
25 February 2009	Pussycat Dolls	Doll Domination Tour
8 March 2009	Željko Samardžić
26 March 2009	Il Divo
7 May 2009	Mile Kitić
9 May 2009	David Guetta
22 May 2009	Enrique Iglesias
24 May 2009	Macy Gray	Attendance: 3,000
17 June 2009	Slipknot	All Hope Is Gone World Tour
26 June 2009	Simply Red
2 September 2009	Leonard Cohen
22 September 2009	Engelbert Humperdinck
3 October 2009	Antonis Remos
17 October 2009	Severina Vučković	Attendance: 20,000
18 October 2009	ZZ Top	Attendance: 13,000
31 October 2009	Riblja Čorba	Attendance: 20,000
5 November 2009	Eros Ramazzotti
10 November 2009	Underworld
11 November 2009	Simple Minds
13 November 2009	Tom Jones
28 November 2009	Van Gogh
11 December 2009	Haris Džinović	Attendance: 18,000
15 December 2009	Backstreet Boys	This Is Us Tour
10 February 2010	Air
14 February 2010	Toni Cetinski	Attendance: 10,000
26 February 2010	Spandau Ballet	Attendance: 8,000
20 March 2010	Rammstein	Liebe ist für alle da Tour
27 March 2010	Plavi orkestar
28 March 2010	Tokio Hotel
1 April 2010	50 Cent
8 May 2010	David Guetta
11 May 2010	Marija Šerifović
15 May 2010	Jelena Karleuša	All About Diva Attendance: 20,000
29 May 2010	Džej Ramadanovski	Attendance: 10,000
3 June 2010	Elton John
6 June 2010	Bob Dylan
9 June 2010	Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood
25 June 2010	Massive Attack
29 September 2010	Guns N' Roses	Chinese Democracy Tour Attendance: 14,000
2 October 2010	Kiki Lesendrić & Piloti
16, 17 October 2010	Parni Valjak	Attendance: 45,000
23 October 2010	Seka Aleksić	Attendance: 20,000
3, 4 November 2010	Aca Lukas	Attendance: 40,000
17 November 2010	Gotan Project
10 December 2010	Sergej Ćetković
20 December 2010	Anahí	Mi Delirio World Tour
27 February 2011	Vanessa-Mae
8 March 2011	Željko Samardžić
22 March 2011	Faithless
1 April 2011	Tap 011
10 April 2011	Guano Apes
9 May 2011	Shakira	The Sun Comes Out World Tour
25 May 2011	Hurts
29 May 2011	Joe Cocker
4 June 2011	The Cult
8 June 2011	Sting
1 July 2011	Judas Priest & Whitesnake	Epitaph World Tour
6 July 2011	Santana
31 July 2011	Slash
20 September 2011	Bryan Ferry
23 September 2011	Norman Cook
10 October 2011	Jean Michel Jarre
20, 21 October 2011	Lepa Brena	Začarani krug Tour Attendance: 50,000
26 October 2011	Boris Berezovsky
30 October 2011	Sade	Sade Live
3 November 2011	Aca Lukas
6 November 2011	Montserrat Caballé
25, 26, 27 November 2011	Dino Merlin
21 December 2011	Michalis Hatzigiannis
31 December 2011	Aca Lukas
14 February 2012	Toni Cetinski
28 April 2012	Beogradski Sindikat
12 May 2012	Sensation
31 May 2012	Pink Martini
1 June 2012	Zaz
22 September 2012	Il Divo
26 October 2012	Nina Badrić	Attendance: 10,000
30 October 2012	Steve Vai
3 November 2012	Aca Lukas
20 November 2012	Jennifer Lopez	Dance Again World Tour Attendance: 18,000
4 December 2012	The Cranberries
21 December 2012	Elements
29 December 2012	Smak
14 February 2013	Sergej Ćetković
23 March 2013	Riblja Corba
30 March 2013	Severina
06 April 2013	Masters of Dirt
15 April 2013	Beyoncé	The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour
28 April 2013	Rammstein	Made in Germany 1995–2011 (tour)
30 April 2013	Mark Knopfler
10 May 2013	Andrea Bocelli
	Cast of Two Faces Of Love

Also, in several international competitions, the record attendance has been set at the Arena. On February 2, 2009, the 2009 Fed Cup World Group II, Serbia vs. Japan tennis match set a record for an ITF event attendance with a crowd of 15,118 spectators. On March 5, 2009, the first Partizan Belgrade basketball game at Belgrade Arena was held, a 2008–09 Euroleague Top 16 match against Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos. A crowd of 22,567, a record for the Euroleague (and also for any basketball club game held indoors in Europe), saw Partizan win 63–56. On July 26, 2009, the FIVB World League final between Serbia and Brazil was held in Belgrade Arena, with an attendance of 22,680, which is a record of Belgrade Arena, and World League.

Volleyball World League Finals Serbia and Montenegro - Brazil, July 10, 2005: first sold out event in the Belgrade Arena, with seats on Level 100 East and Level 100 West missing.

Upcoming events

Main article: List of events held in Belgrade Arena#Upcoming events

In the future, Arena is set to host numerous concerts including the Mrs Cater World Tour starring Beyonce Knowles and sporting events, notably the 2012 European Women's Handball Championship and the 2013 World Women's Handball Championship.

Location and influence

Belgrade Arena north-west.

The Belgrade Arena is situated on E-70/E-75 highway, leading to Novi Sad and Budapest in the North, Zagreb in the West and Niš and Skopje in the South. The New Belgrade part of the highway bears the name Bulevar Arsenija Čarnojevića. Arena's parking is limited in spaces, though nearby residential areas provide enough room for vehicles.

It takes a 15-minute drive from Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport to the Arena. Ride from downtown Belgrade would take the same amount of time, unless in rush-hour, when it could take up to 30 minutes to get to central Novi Beograd, where the Arena is located.

The construction of the Arena has caused a substantial increase in prices for apartments in the surrounding area, which are mostly new. A new modern business district is scheduled to be constructed across the Belgrade Arena. Hotel IN was the first new hotel to be built near the Arena however the venue is also within walking distance from Hyatt Regency Belgrade and Continental Hotel Belgrade.

See also

• List of stadiums in Serbia
• List of indoor arenas in Europe
• List of tennis stadiums by capacity

External links

• Official website
• Belgrade Arena profile at the European Arenas Association official site
• Eventim
• Ticketline
• Tiketservis (Serbia)
• City of Belgrade
• BeoBuild exclusive report

Events and tenants
Preceded by Stockholm Globe Arena Stockholm	EuroBasket Final Venue 2005	Succeeded by Palacio de Deportes Madrid
Preceded by Hartwall Areena Helsinki	Eurovision Song Contest Venue 2008	Succeeded by Olympic Indoor Arena Moscow
Preceded by Tašmajdan Stadium	Zvezde Granda Final Venue 2009, 2011	Succeeded by Grand Production Studio
Preceded by Rajamangala Stadium Bangkok	Summer Universiade Opening and Closing Ceremonies 2009	Succeeded by Shenzhen Bay Sports Center Shenzhen
Preceded by Palau Sant Jordi Barcelona	Davis Cup Final Venue 2010	Succeeded by Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla Seville
Preceded by Wiener Stadthalle Vienna	European Men's Handball Championship Final Venue 2012	Succeeded by Jyske Bank Boxen Herning
Preceded by Jyske Bank Boxen Herning	European Women's Handball Championship Final Venue 2012	Succeeded by TBD
Preceded by Ginásio do Ibirapuera São Paulo	World Women's Handball Championship Final Venue 2013	Succeeded by TBD