Crypto.com Arena
Crypto.com Arena hosted the first game of the 2024-2025 NBA season on Tuesday night (Oct. 22), which saw the arena’s tenants, the Los Angeles Lakers, take on the Minnesota Timberwolves. The evening notably featured the first appearance of a father-son duo (LeBron James and son Bronny James) in NBA history — while the 25-year-old arena also showed off its new, nine-figure renovations.
A quarter of a century is a long time for any entertainment arena to remain culturally relevant, but Crypto.com Arena (formerly Staples Center) has completed its third round of multi-million-dollar renovations to keep up with technological advancements and a new era in fan enjoyment.
During the Oct. 22 game, the arena — at the center of the entertainment campus L.A. Live — unveiled its new outdoor space, refreshed food and beverage offerings and state-of-the-art technology designed to reduce wait times throughout the facility. The arena’s first outdoor space, the City View Terrace, offers concert and game attendees the option of enjoying food and drinks with downtown Los Angeles as the backdrop while still being able to view the game or concert taking place inside. The terrace features several food and beverage stops and is open to all ticket holders.
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For floor- or ice-seat ticketholders, the arena revamped its exclusive Chairman’s Club to become the Delta SKY360° Club. On Wednesday (Oct. 23), Crypto.com Arena senior vp of guest services and security Danielle Snyder took media on a tour of the reimagined space, which includes a private bar in a lounge setting that is only accessible to premium seat holders and friends and family of the team or act playing. For the first time in its history, Crypto.com Arena will also now offer VIP tours to the general public, allowing guests to access behind-the-scenes areas such as the Delta SKY360° Club.
Danielle Snyder, Crypto.com Arena Senior Vice President of Guest Services and Security
Courtesy of Crypto.com Arena
This season, founding partner Coca-Cola is also continuing to expand its presence with the newly unveiled Coke Studio, a 3,300-square-foot music-driven studio and event space at Crypto.com Arena that will host concerts, artist appearances, podcast recordings and more. Coca-Cola is supporting the arena’s sustainability initiatives, including the r.Cup program, which replaces single-use cups with reusable ones to help further the arena’s commitment to reducing waste. As part of this program, Coca-Cola products, along with other non-alcoholic beverages, will be served in r.Cup’s reusable vessels.
The arena’s new food offerings include chef and TV host David Chang’s spicy fried chicken concept fuku and chef and restaurateur Ludo Lefebvre’s two new concession stands: Mediterranean-focused Ludobab and Trois Familia, a fusion of Lefebvre’s French background with local Mexican cuisine. Elsewhere, Fresh Brothers will become the arena’s official pizza partner with a new concession stand (replacing Blaze Pizza), while Big Mozz is the arena’s newest official mozzarella stick partner.
Courtesy of Crypto.com Arena
A standout of the new offerings includes the first Doritos restaurant, Doritos After Dark. Located at the arena’s main Star Plaza entrance, Doritos After Dark serves up late-night favorites elevated with the flavor and crunch of Doritos for appetizers and entrees. Special items include Doritos Spicy Sweet Chili Ramen-Rito (a Dorito and ramen-filled burrito) and Doritos Nacho Cheese Crunchtastic Vanilla Cone (an ice cream cone with a chocolate shell covered in cheesy chips). On Nov. 15, for one night only, Doritos After Dark will step out of the arena and into a one-of-a-kind Doritos Night Market pop-up in a free, immersive, neon-filled atmosphere open to all from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at L.A. Live’s Peacock Place.
Courtesy of Crypto.com Arena
New technology has also been installed at the arena. This includes Evolv, a leader in AI-based security technology, which is enhancing fan safety with the rollout of its Evolv Express screening system at all entrances. This cutting-edge technology allows fans to move through security checkpoints more quickly and efficiently, differentiating between potential threats and most everyday metal items such as cell phones and keys. By streamlining entry, Evolv is designed to help fans spend less time waiting in line and more time enjoying the event.
Once inside, fans can also skip lines with Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology, which has been installed at multiple locations inside the arena, along with the brand-new Exo self-checkout at the Team LA Store, which also underwent a remodel. Now, all items at the Team LA Store include RFID technology, which allows fans to drop all their merchandise into a scanner that rings up everything instantaneously. The technology is currently only available at sporting events, as tour merchandise is not yet streamlined with RFID technology.
Crypto.com Arena is set to host programming tied to some of the biggest and highest-profile sporting events over the next decade. Among other events, it has been selected to host the 2025 Grammy Awards (the 22nd time the arena has hosted music’s biggest night), the 2027 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Regional, and the men’s and women’s gymnastics competitions for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
As music consumers increasingly demand sustainable options from businesses across the industry, AEG has struck a partnership that will bring a full-time reusable cup program to Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena and Peacock Theater, the company announced Tuesday (June 4). In collaboration with reusable serveware company r.World, which produces reusable items for large-scale gatherings, the venues […]
Crypto.com Arena and its concessions partner, Levy Restaurants, broke their previous record for food sales at this year’s 66th Grammy Awards, averaging $97.17 in sales per person, says Lee Zeidman, president of Crypto.com Arena, Peacock Theater and LA Live. The sales figure was enough to top the record per cap of $95.94 at last year’s […]
Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles is pilot testing a new waste diversion initiative at the arena’s upcoming two-night run for Depeche Mode on Dec. 15 and 17.
The program, held in conjunction with reusable cup manufacturer r.World, could help divert hundreds of thousands of single-use cups out of local landfills and eventually serve as a staple sustainability initiative at the AEG-owned facility, which is widely recognized as a leader in the live entertainment business’ efforts toward long-term sustainability.
As part of the program, Crypto.com Arena and its janitorial servicer, ABM, will work with r.World to receive and distribute 13,000 beer, cocktail and soft drink cups around the arena. On the nights of the Depeche Mode performances, the cups will be utilized by the arena’s bar, beverage and concessionaires to serve drinks to attendees, who will then dispose of the cups in specially marked bins staged around the arena. At the end of the first show, the cups will be collected by r.World staff and taken to a nearby cleaning facility where they will be washed and returned to the arena for the second night. Both shows are being promoted by Live Nation.
The program, explains Crypto.com Arena president Lee Zeidman, was inspired by Depeche Mode’s long-running commitment to environmental and sustainability initiatives. “Commencing with the electrifying Depeche Mode concerts, our aim is to ignite a wave of positive change and rally our audience and partners to actively participate in shaping a more eco-conscious future,” he tells Billboard.
Last year, a similar pilot program was launched by AEG-owned Goldenvoice with r.World to eliminate plastic cups from its Cali Vibes festival in Long Beach, Calif. Following the pilot, Crypto.com Arena will evaluate the data from the two concerts and, if the program is successful, will look to collaborate with current or future partners to make r.World a full-time option to guests and fans in the future.
“We believe that there’s going to be less labor needed in terms of cleanup and the cleanup crew, and we believe we’re going to have lower waste disposal fees,” Zeidman says. “We also believe that people will embrace this opportunity to keep single plastic waste out of the stream and perhaps buy more beers or Cokes.”
In addition to Los Angeles, r.World boasts industrial “Wash Hub” facilities that also service Denver, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C. To meet market demand for reuse, the company plans to expand the program to eight to 12 more cities in the next 24 months.
“We’re excited to work with Crypto.com Arena — as one of the busiest venues in the world, the positive environmental impact potential of reuse is massive,” said Michael Martin, r.World founder/CEO. “They’ve led the industry and operated in the most environmentally innovative ways since opening in 1999, and so it’s no surprise they’re launching the pilot reuse program in the LA market and ultimately, driving change across the live events industry.”
Jeff Olson has been hired as vp of booking for Crypto. com Arena, Microsoft Theater and L.A. LIVE. In his new role, Olson will focus on sourcing talent and securing deals with high-priority clients and promoters for shows for all three venues. In addition, he’ll be responsible for working with the Los Angeles Lakers, Kings, Clippers and Sparks to assist with the scheduling and maintaining the arena’s calendar as well as working with the award shows and residencies to assist with the scheduling and maintaining Microsoft Theater and L.A. LIVE venue calendars.
“We are incredibly excited to have Jeff Olson joining our team,” says Lee Zeidman, president, Crypto.com Arena, Microsoft Theater and L.A. LIVE. “He brings over 23 years of experience and knowledge of booking and event production to our venues and to the market, along with strong industry relationships. We are looking forward to having Jeff joining us here in Los Angeles and booking a variety of content for our venues in this competitive market.”
Hallie Yavitch, svp of booking and marketing for the trio of venues, said she was happy to welcome Olson back to town for this position — from 2002 to 2014 he lived in LA while working as a talent buyer and marketing director for the Arena Network.
“His impressive resume, experience and relationships will help our venues continue to grow and succeed in a competitive landscape,” Yavitch said.
The Michigan State alum started his career in the live entertainment industry as a talent buyer for Meridian Entertainment in Holt, Michigan in 1998 and went on to work at the ArenaNetwork before becoming the director of booking, events and marketing for the Memphis Grizzlies and FedEx Forum. In his time at the FedEx Forum, he delivered multiple record years in both the number of events, as well as fiscal performance for the venue. From November 2021 to February 2023, he became director of booking & special events for Snapdragon Stadium, the OVG360-managed facility in San Diego.
Olson will report directly to Yavitch.
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