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Co-Op Live celebrate huge first week including opening shows by elbow, The Black Keys, Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow

Manchester's brand new arena boasting massive 23,500 capacity, state of the art facilities and trailblazing venue design.

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Co op Live Shot by Nick Flynn 3
Shot by Nick Flynn
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  • elbow opened Co-op Live on 14 May with a very special hometown show
  • Opening week has also seen performances from The Black Keys, Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow
  • The newest and largest arena in the UK with start of the art facilities, Co-op Live is now fully open

British rock band elbow opened the UK’s newest arena, Co-op Live, last week with a very special hometown show, marking the start of a new chapter in Manchester’s revered music and entertainment story. Located on Etihad Campus, just a short distance from the centre of Manchester, the exciting new venue is the largest indoor arena in the country, with opening week also including performances from American rockers The Black Keys, as well as music icons Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow.

Boasting an impressive 23,500 capacity, Co-op Live is the UK’s largest indoor arena with the largest standing floor space. The venue brings fans 23m closer to artists than ever before. The arena’s smart ‘bowl’ design means it is big yet incredibly intimate, with the arena also featuring cutting edge visual technology and incredible, world-class acoustics.

Manchester royalty and BRIT Award winners elbow opened the arena on 14 May with a career-spanning performance that included anthems ‘One Day Like This’ and ‘Grounds For Divorce’. Ohio blues rockers The Black Keys performed the following day, while music legends Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow also took to the stage at the brand-new venue over the weekend.

Guy Garvey, elbow, said: “It was a wonderful evening in a well-designed building, and a feather in the cap of Manchester’s incredible music scene set to add even more to the local economy. We are so pleased that it ended up being us opening Co-op Live. It was a really proud moment, and the best we have ever sounded.”

Co-op Live is set to bring over 120 events per year to the North West, attracting 1.3M fans to see the world’s biggest and most exciting global artists. The arena’s commitment to delivering unparalleled and world-leading experiences has already garnered an impressive lineup for the remainder of 2024 and into 2025.

With the stage now set for a vibrant opening season, a stellar lineup of stars including Nicki Minaj and the legendary Stevie Nicks will perform at the music first arena over the coming weeks. Co-op Live will also host several multi-night residencies, including Liam Gallagher, The Killers and UK exclusive performances by the iconic band, the Eagles.

The arena will offer a range of performances spanning all genres of live entertainment, with tickets still available for select shows. Co-op members get first in line access to presale tickets at Co-op Live. Find out more about at https://www.cooplive.com/.

20240514 COOP ELBOW 1666 HR Credit SophieTraynor scaled
CO-OP Live -ELBOW – Credit Sophie Traynor
Sam Hyland
Author: Sam Hyland

Sam is the assistant content manager for Event Industry News (EIN). Sam is involved in publishing news stories, videos and podcasts. Sam also collates the latest stories for the EIN e-newsletter. If you have a press release or story you think we might be interested to know about please email features@eventindustrynews.com

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