In 2024, the all-time attendance record for Germany's largest multifunctional arena, which was previously set in 2017 with over 2.1 million guests, will be broken at a total of 193 events.
Over the past 353 days, the stars have once again been coming and going in the LANXESS arena. From Depeche Mode, Apache 207 and Ayliva (three shows each) to Justin Timberlake, Peter Fox and Cat Ballou (two shows each) and Nicki Minaj, Olivia Rodrigo and Janet Jackson: this year, everyone who is anyone once again took to the stage in Cologne-Deutz, attracting crowds of national and international visitors to the cathedral city on the Rhine.
The Arena also celebrated a number of landmark events in 2018, including the EHF EURO, the European Handball Championship in January, for which 335,750 tickets were sold in Cologne alone. The “Lachende Kölnarena”, which celebrated its 25th anniversary during this year's carnival season, was once again a popular traditional format held on twelve dates, for which the arena's upper tier was opened for the first time since 1999. The Cologne Sharks were also a mainstay of the successful Deutz event circus with a new European ice hockey attendance record of an average of 16,996 fans per home game in the 2023/2024 season, and are currently doing even better in the new season, which began in September.
Arena Managing Director Stefan Löcher puts the new record in context: “We will have welcomed over 2.4 million guests by the end of the year – absolutely amazing! Live entertainment is booming, which is not a matter of course in the current economic situation.We are deeply grateful for this and for the great trust placed in us by our partners, organizers and service providers. This all-time record emphasizes the economic importance of the arena for the entire city and region – whether in gastronomy, the hotel industry or tourism in general. The image-related lighthouse effect and the media coverage that this strong arena year has generated for Cologne are an additional factor.Finally, my thanks go to the entire team. The employees have once again achieved the incredible and it was only by working together that this record could be broken."
In 2024, the LANXESS arena will have hosted a total of 62 sporting events, 61 concerts, 66 entertainment formats such as carnival, comedy and shows, as well as three corporate events and a trade fair.
Looking ahead to 2025, the next highlights are already in the starting blocks. Among other things, Cologne event fans can look forward to 18 dates of the “Lachende...” formats, a German exclusive show by US star Pitbull in February, a double visit from Billie Eilish in May, and a whopping four consecutive dates from shooting star Ayliva in September. The newly set attendance record can therefore be immediately confirmed...
You can also rent the LANXESS arena exclusively for company events, product presentations and customer events of all kinds. Enquire here!