Menu
Esports

$50M esports arena coming to Philadelphia

The Fusion Arena, to open in 2021, will be home to the Philadelphia Fusion team that competes in the Overwatch League.comcast spectacor

Comcast Spectacor and The Cordish Cos. are building a $50 million, 3,500-seat esports arena in Philadelphia.

The Fusion Arena will be next to Wells Fargo Center, Lincoln Financial Field, Citizens Bank Park and the mixed-use Xfinity Live development.

“We’re thrilled to introduce a venue like no other as we move forward with the next phase of development within the Philadelphia Sports Complex,” said Dave Scott, Comcast Spectacor’s chairman and CEO.

Xfinity Live is also a joint venture between Comcast Spectacor and Cordish, which specializes in real estate developments around stadiums and arenas. 

Architecture firm Populous designed the 60,000-square-foot venue, which will be home to the Philadelphia Fusion, an esports team owned by Comcast Spectacor that competes in the Overwatch League. The league wants its teams to play in their home markets next year. The Fusion are looking at playing at other venues in Philadelphia while the new esports venue is being built.

Construction will start this summer on a site currently used as a parking lot and the venue is scheduled to open in 2021. The Fusion facility will have a 10,000-square-foot esports training facility as well as two balcony bars, a broadcast studio and premium boxes and suites.

The venue will be rigged to also host small concerts, comedy shows and corporate events, said Joe Marsh, chief business officer for Comcast Spectacor’s gaming division and the Fusion.

Populous also designed the $10 million Esports Stadium Arlington, a 100,000-square-foot gaming space built at the Arlington Convention Center hear Dallas.

“We’ve reached a place now where there is a need for purpose-built esports venues,” said Brian Mirakian, a senior principal with Populous. “This project represents the prototype of the future.”

Cordish Principal Blake Cordish expects to see more esports projects like the one in Philadelphia. “This flagship esports venue will perfectly complement the surrounding anchors in the Philadelphia Sports Complex,” Cordish said. “The Cordish Cos. is extremely bullish about the future of esports, especially when integrated into mixed-use, sports-anchored developments.”

For more coverage of the business of esports, visit our partners, esportsobserver.com.

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 18, 2024

Sports Business Awards nominees unveiled; NWSL's historic opening weekend and takeaways from CFP deal

ESPN’s Jay Bilas, BTN’s Meghan McKeown, and a deep dive into AppleTV+’s The Dynasty

On this week’s Sports Media Podcast from the New York Post and Sports Business Journal, ESPN’s Jay Bilas talks all things NCAA. Big Ten Network’s Meghan McKeown shares her insight into the Caitlin Clark craze. The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn chats all things Bean Town. And SBJ’s Xavier Hunter drops in to share his findings on how the NWSL is making a social media push.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2019/03/25/Esports/Philadelphia-venue.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2019/03/25/Esports/Philadelphia-venue.aspx

CLOSE