Oak View Group

OVG Oak View Group, LLC is an American Global Advisory, Development and Investment Company for Sports and Live Entertainment industries. Based in Los Angeles, it was formed on November 16, 2015 by Tim Leiweke and his business partner, Irving Azoff.[1] Leiweke is the company's chief executive officer.[2]

Oak View Group, LLC
IndustryEntertainment
Business Development
Sports Management
FoundedNovember 16, 2015
FounderTim Leiweke and Irving Azoff
Headquarters
Los Angeles
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Tim Leiweke (CEO) Irving Azoff (President)
SubsidiariesPollstar
WebsiteOfficial Website

History & business developments

The company's biggest project to date was its redevelopment of the former KeyArena in Seattle, in part in preparation for the Seattle Kraken, the city's National Hockey League team. The new arena, renamed Climate Pledge Arena via a naming rights deal with Amazon is also the home to the WNBA's Seattle Storm. On December 4, 2017, the Seattle City Council voted 7–1 to approve a memorandum of understanding with the Oak View Group for the redevelopment,[3] which built a new subterranean arena on the existing site while retaining the historical landmarked roof and three exterior walls. Demolition and construction for the new arena began in 2018 and was fully completed in 2021.[4] The company was competing against a rival proposal by Chris Hansen.

On December 7, the NHL's board of governors agreed to consider an application for an expansion team from Seattle, with an expansion fee set at $650 million.[5] The Seattle ownership group is represented by David Bonderman and Jerry Bruckheimer.[6] On February 20, Mayor Jenny Durkan launched an NHL campaign during her State of the Union and announced that the Oak View Group would be initiating a season ticket drive on March 1, 2018.[7] OVG manages Climate Pledge Arena.

The group is also a partner in UBS Arena with the New York Islanders.[8] In December 2017, New York Arena Partners (a venture of the Islanders, Oak View Group, and Sterling Equities) won a bid to construct a new, 18,000-seat arena and mixed-used district at Belmont Park, beating a competing proposal by New York City FC for a new soccer stadium. The new arena was completed in time for the 2021-22 season.[9][10]

In 2016, Oak View Group announced an "Arena Alliance" of independent arenas such as AT&T Center (San Antonio), Scotiabank Arena (Toronto), Amalie Arena (Tampa Bay), BB&T Center (Ft. Lauderdale), Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis), Chase Center (San Francisco), PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh), KeyBank Center (Buffalo), The Forum (Los Angeles), Golden 1 Center (Sacramento), Little Caesars Arena (Detroit), Madison Square Garden (New York), Pepsi Center (Denver), State Farm Arena (Atlanta), Prudential Center (Newark), Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (Cleveland), Rogers Arena (Vancouver), Enterprise Center (St. Louis), United Center (Chicago), Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia), and Xcel Energy Center (St. Paul).[11]

In 2016, the company acquired Venues Today, a trade publication for the live entertainment industry.[12] In 2017, the company purchased Pollstar, a trade publication for the concert industry.[13]

In 2018, it was announced that Oak View Group and the University of Texas at Austin had agreed to build a new $338 million arena for the Texas Longhorns men's and women's basketball programs to replace the Frank Erwin Center.[14]

In 2019, Oak View Group launched Oak View Group International. Based in London, it will focus on building arena and stadium development and partnership opportunities in the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Jessica Koravos, president of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group, and formerly MD of Anschutz Entertainment Group Live and COO of AEG Europe, serves as co-chair of OVG International alongside Tim Leiweke.

In February 2019, it was announced that Oak View Group had become the arena manager of Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Connecticut.[15] Oak View Group also will operate Acrisure Arena in Thousand Palms, California. When completed, the arena will serve as the home ice for the Kraken's American Hockey League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds.[16]

In August 2021, it was announced that Oak View Group and Spectra, a venue management company, would be merging to form a full-service live events company.[17] In October 2021, Oak View Group partnered with the Hamilton Urban Precinct Entertainment Group (HUPEG) to redevelop Hamilton, Ontario's Arts and Entertainment district, including a renovation of FirstOntario Centre.[18]

On March 30, 2022, Oak View announced its largest project to date, a 20,000-seat arena in Las Vegas.[19]

References
  1. "Tim Leiweke and Azoff MSG Entertainment Join Forces to Launch the Oak View Group (OVG)". Globe Newswire. November 16, 2015. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
  2. "Our Executive Team – Oak View Group". www.oakviewgroup.com. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  3. "KeyArena MOU approved by Seattle City Council; will NHL announcement soon follow?". The Seattle Times. December 4, 2017.
  4. "KeyArena renovation wins approval from Seattle City Council". KING-TV. December 4, 2017.
  5. "Bettman says NHL will consider Seattle expansion bid". USA Today. December 7, 2017. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  6. Rosen, Dan (December 7, 2017). "Seattle can begin NHL expansion process". National Hockey League. Retrieved December 9, 2017.
  7. "BREAKING: Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan kicks off a campaign for NHL expansion". Sonics Rising. Retrieved 2018-02-21.
  8. Pm, 2018 6:06. "Oak View Group CEO: Nothing has changed with Belmont plan". Newsday. Retrieved 2019-02-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. "It's official: New York Islanders heading back to Nassau County". abc7ny.com. Disney–ABC Television Group. December 20, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  10. "NHL's Islanders Win Right to Build Arena at Belmont Site". Bloomberg.com. 2017-12-19. Retrieved 2018-01-24.
  11. "OVG Unveils the Charter Members of the 'Arena Alliance' Uniting Independent World-Class Facilities for the First Time". www.businesswire.com. 2016-09-19. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
  12. "Oak View Group Acquires Venues Today". VenuesNow. 2016-12-21. Retrieved 2019-04-06.
  13. "It's official: Oak View Group acquires Pollstar". IQ Magazine. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  14. Daniel, Cody (2018-12-20). "The University of Texas, Oak View Group agree to build 'world-class' on-campus arena". Burnt Orange Nation. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
  15. "OAK VIEW GROUP TO MANAGE WEBSTER BANK ARENA". WebsterBankArena.com. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
  16. "Seattle NHL franchise to have AHL affiliate in Palm Springs". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  17. "Oak View Group and Spectra to Merge, Creating a Leading Full-Service Live Events Company". prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2021-09-01.
  18. Mims, Taylor (October 7, 2021). "Oak View Group Enters Canadian Market With Ontario Arena Project". Billboard.
  19. Mar 30, Ryan Borba |; Arenas, 2022 |; Stadiums (2022-03-30). "Oak View Group Acquires Las Vegas Land For $3 Billion Arena/Casino Project - VenuesNow". Retrieved 2022-03-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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