Venue Detail
Atlanta Hawks
Revenues From Sports Venues Pro Facilities Report
February, 2011
Atlanta Hawks
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One CNN Center Ste 405 Atlanta, GA 30303-2705 Phone: 404-827-3800 Fax: 404-827-3880 URL: www.hawks.com
Owner
Michael Gearon and Bruce Levenson
League
National Basketball Association Eastern Conference, Southeast
Venue
Philips Arena, 1 Philips Dr, Atlanta, GA 30303 Owner: Atlanta-Fulton County Recreation Authority Managed by: Team Built: 1999 Capacity: 18,750 Permanent concession stands: 23 Concessionaire: The Levy Restaurants Suite caterer: Buckhead Life Restaurant Group Soft drink: Coca Cola Beer: Anheuser-Busch InBev
Building sponsors
Clubs/Restaurants: Yes Seating: Yes Entries: Yes
Naming rights
Sold to: Royal Philips Electronics Price: $168, 000,000 Term: 20 years Expires: 2019
Ticket prices
Season tickets range from $199 to $4,048 Single tickets range from $10.00 to $165.00
Attendance
2007 average attendance: 15,594 2008 average attendance: 16,280 2009 average attendance: 17,303
Luxury Suites
Quantity: 92 Term: 3 to 10 years Price: $165,000 to $300,000 Seats: 14 to 24 Includes: Party suites lease for $2,000 to $5,000 per event.
Club seats
Quantity: 1,893 Term: 3 to 9 years Price: $4,830 to $16,800 Includes: The price includes tickets to Hawks and Thrashers games, in-seat wait service and priority purchasing for other events.
Financing
The $214 million arena was funded by $150 million in revenue bonds secured by the arena, $63 million from a car rental tax and $20 million from Turner/Time Warner.
While all venue revenue goes to the teams, the picture isn't as rosy as it sounds. To get the new arena, Time Warner literally put the Hawks up as collateral against building payments. The company said it would forfeit the team if it fails to make just one of the debt payments on the building. The $150 million in construction bonds requires payments of $12.5 million a year for 30 years and that must all come from the teams. It was estimated that Hawks' revenue would generate 1.3 times the amount needed and with the Thrashers, there would be more than twice the revenue needed. Venue revenue will be used to pay the debt. Pct. public: 29
The venue opened in 1999 as the home of the NBA Hawks and expansion NHL Thrashers.
The $214 million arena has open air luxury suites grouped together and stacked vertically with club seats in an area that takes only one-quarter of the bowl. The suites include six party suites and club seats. There is a private entrance for club and suite holders, plus access to a lounge and restaurant. Sixty percent of the general seats are in the lower portion of the arena. This is done by wrapping three-fourths of the bowl with two tiers of seats and having the upper bowl overlap the lower one.
Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands paid $168 million for the right to name Atlanta's new arena. Like the deal with PSINet in Baltimore, the 20-year agreement goes beyond a simple naming rights relationship. In addition to naming, Philips and arena owner Time Warner will develop cross-marketing efforts.
Likewise, Philips will be the sole supplier of electronic equipment in the arena and the CNN Center next door, including large-screen televisions.
The downtown arena, which covers 12 acres, is linked to the CNN Center next door by an enclosed atrium and a 400-foot-long retail/entertainment strip.
Turner Broadcasting System decided to limit to 10 the number of sponsors in the new arena. The companies signed up for the program include Coca-Cola, Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Powertel, United Parcel Service, Anheuser-Busch, Bank of America, MediaOne and WebMD, an online medical information provider. Prices were not disclosed, but were estimated at $2.3 million a year, including broadcast advertising.
Signage in the arena is coordinated and features only one sponsor at a time. During Hawks games, a sponsor will get 30 seconds of exposure before the signs change. During Thrasher games the time increases to 45 seconds. The sponsorships do not preclude the teams from selling a limited amount of other advertising that will only appear on dasher boards or table banners.
The agreements also give some sponsors unique promotion abilities. Delta offers a 20-seat, two-level lounge that overlooks the court. The seats are identical to those in the airline's BusinessElite overseas flights. Delta offers the seats to selected clients and a lucky few fans who will be chosen at random in the arena.
Powertel has retail space in the arena and offers special telephones bearing team logos. Bank of America sponsors a club for suite and club seat holders.
Courtside seats for the Hawks cost $17,955 per season. (Basketball, Facilities, Financial, NBA, Professional Sports)