Avicii Arena

Construction

Avicii Arena is the largest spherical building on Earth and took two and a half years to build. It has a diameter of 110 m and an inner height of 85 m. The volume of the building is 605,000 m3 and it has a seating capacity of 16,000 spectators for shows and concerts, and 13,850 for ice hockey. In the upper area there are 40 VIP boxes and a restaurant.

The steel, concrete and glass construction designed by the architects Berg Arkitektkontor AB is supported by a MERO space structure.

History

Globen was inaugurated on 19 February 1989 after a construction period of less than three years. The first major events were Melodifestivalen, the Ice Hockey World Championships and the Men's European Volleyball Championships.

In 2009, the naming rights to the Stockholm Globe Arena were officially acquired by Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, and it became known as the Ericsson Globe. The arena is called "Globen" because the building is shaped like a globe.

In 2021, it was announced that the arena would be renamed the Avicii Arena in honour of the late Swedish DJ Avicii, who died in 2018. To commemorate the new name, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra recorded a performance of the Avicii song "For a Better Day", with vocals provided by fourteen-year-old Swedish singer Ella Tiritiello.

In June 2022, it was decided to renovate and modernize the arena throughout 2024, with a view of hosting the 2025 IIHF World Championship (which is to be jointly held in Sweden and Denmark) and as part of the unclear Stockholm bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics. After the scheduled reopening at the start of 2025, the neighboring Hovet arena is scheduled to be demolished and the site is to become part of the new district of Soderhov. In July 2023, it was announced that the NCC company had received the contract for the renovation. In 2027, the arena will host the group phase matches for the FIBA Women's EuroBasket.

Events

The Globe is primarily used for ice hockey, and is the former home arena of AIK, Djurgårdens IF, and Hammarby IF. It is also used for musical performances as well as other sports than ice hockey, for example futsal (indoor football). The third team to play a home game in their league was Huddinge IK (three home games there, all in 1993), followed by Hammarby IF (20 home games in Globen so far) and AC Camelen (one game in 1998, in the sixth level league, with 92 spectators).

The first international game played in Globen was between Hammarby IF (Sweden) and Jokerit (Finland) a couple of weeks before the grand opening, although the players were only 12 years old at the time (born 1977) and it was a friendly game.

The arena hosted the final of Sveriges Television's yearly music competition Melodifestivalen, Sweden's qualifier show for the Eurovision Song Contest, until 2012. The show returned to the arena for the first three heats of the 2022 competition. It also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2000 and 2016.

In March 2021, it hosted the World Figure Skating Championships despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2021, it hosted the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament Major Stockholm 2021.

Since 2000, the National Hockey League has used the arena for occasional games, both in the preseason and the regular season. The most recent games at the arena were two regular-season games between the Buffalo Sabres and Tampa Bay Lightning in November 2019, part of the NHL Global Series event. The Global Series returned to Avicii Arena in November 2023, with the Senators returning and being joined by the Detroit Red Wings, Minnesota Wild, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Each team played two games during the event.

Concerts

Artwork

A small cottage in aluminum with a 12 m2 base was placed upon the Globe on 26 May 2009. The artist, Mikael Genberg, intended it to illustrate two important symbols for Sweden: the high-technology Globe building and the traditional, simple small countryside cottage in Falu red with white trim. The house was positioned some distance from the exact top position of the Globe. Genberg also hoped to eventually place a similar cottage on the Moon, which has not yet happened. The cottage remained on the Globe until October 2009.

Skyview

Opened in February 2010, Skyview is an exterior inclined elevator which transports visitors to the top of the arena for a virtually unobstructed view of Stockholm.

It has two spherical gondolas, each able to accommodate up to 12 passengers, which travel along parallel tracks on the exterior of the south side of the globe.

References

References

1. (5 May 2018). "Metallica återtog publikrekordet i Globen". [[Sveriges Television]].
2. Fekadu, Mesfin. (19 May 2021). "Sweden's Ericsson Globe gets a new name: AVICII ARENA". ABC News.
3. (19 May 2021). "Globen byter namn till Avicii Arena".
4. Facts, Commonplace Fun. (10 November 2021). "Sweden's Scale Model of the Solar System Spans the Whole Country".
5. "The Sweden Solar System". Sweden Solar System.
6. "Ericsson Globe". [[AEG (German company).
7. "Globen byter namn till Ericsson Globe". Stockholm Globe.
8. Willman, Chris. (19 May 2021). "Stockholm's Avicii Arena Aims to Raise Awareness of Mental Health Issues".
9. (20 June 2022). "KLART: Hovet ska rivas – så påverkas ishockeyn".
10. Rial, Bradley. (4 July 2023). "NCC lands contract to renovate Avicii Arena".
11. "Arenorna för alla Melodifestivalens sändningar är klara". SVT.
12. (26 April 2023). "Red Wings, Wild, Senators, Maple Leafs to play in 2023 NHL Global Series". National Hockey League.
13. (19 November 2023). "Maple Leafs beat Wild 4-3 in OT and extend winning streak to 4 games in Global Series finale". Brad Ford Today.
14. "Världsunika multiarenan Avicii Arena".
15. (23 May 2009). "Röd stuga på Globens topp". [[Sveriges Television]].
16. (26 May 2009). "Video: Stuga placerad på Globens tak". Sveriges Television.
17. "SkyView - Avicii Arena".
18. "SkyView - Avicii Arena".