ASM GLOBAL’S DESERT DIAMOND ARENA CELEBRATES RECORD-BREAKING 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR
Best-in-Class Venue Reports Highest Revenues and Attendance for Two Consecutive Years
(GLENDALE, AZ – Jan. 9, 2024) — Desert Diamond Arena, Arizona’s premier entertainment destination, has announced that it has posted its best year ever in the property’s two-decade history. 2023 is also the second consecutive year that the state-of-the-art multipurpose facility and arena has yielded record financial results.
Desert Diamond Arena, which reached its 20th anniversary in December 2023, capped off the milestone year with record gross revenues, including a dramatic increase in merchandise sales over 2022, and welcomed more than 450,000 guests through its turnstiles, its highest annual attendance since opening its doors in 2003.
This finish ranks Desert Diamond Arena as one of the top performing arenas in the world for ASM Global, the leading venue-management company with over 350 venues worldwide.
“For the second year in a row, and for the first year with new naming rights partner Desert Diamond Casino, the venue has exceeded all expectations, bringing in the best of the year’s tours, and increasing merchandise and food and beverage sales at each event,” said Dale Adams, general manager, ASM Global’s Desert Diamond Arena. “Desert Diamond Arena is a well-oiled machine with a supportive infrastructure that is unmatched, from booking and partnerships, to marketing, sales, and operations. We are so proud of all that the team has accomplished and look forward to continued success in 2024 and beyond.”
Earlier in the unprecedented year, City of Glendale officials also approved a $40 million renovation plan with ASM Global as part of a multiyear strategy to continue to increase the venue’s fiscal returns and prominence in the city’s growth as a national entertainment hub. The fan-facing overhaul to the venue will begin in 2024 and include renovations to its 87 luxury suites, convenient grab-and-go stations, a Speakeasy, and new club spaces for all ticket-goers to enjoy, as well as upgrades to technology to create a more seamless and efficient fan experience.
Responsible for bringing in millions in economic impact annually, the 19,000-capacity Desert Diamond Arena hosted a record number of live events in 2023, including multiple sold-out shows by Zach Bryan, Drake, Carrie Underwood, Katt Williams, Mana, The Cure, Peso Pluma, and many more.
Through partnerships with a total of 24 top event promoters, like Live Nation, Messina and AEG, the venue was able to diversify its schedule with a wide variety of events, from Latin and K-Pop artists, to boxing events, the most its ever hosted in one calendar year.
Other major highlights this year included a capacity crowd for Zach Bryan, the arena’s highest attended concert ever, and a sold-out tour stop by Drake, resulting in the venue’s highest-grossing concert and two-show run ever. Chart-topping performers NF and Lauren Daigle also saw their highest-attended shows at the Glendale, AZ-based venue, while WWE Friday Night Smackdown was the highest-attended, non-prime event in the Valley, and the 2023 Arizona PBR was its most attended in its history in the state. Desert Diamond Arena also proudly welcomed Rihanna to its stage for Super Bowl LVII halftime show rehearsals, another first for the arena.
“Perhaps the biggest impact of Desert Diamond Arena is acting as a catalyst generating two billion dollars in private capital investment around it,” said Glendale City Manager Kevin Phelps. “Clearly, our Sports & Entertainment District wouldn’t be where it is today as one of the most dynamic areas of its kind in the country without the arena. It became the foundation for Glendale to become a destination city with experiential entertainment options, hotels, shopping and restaurants, all within walking distance of where Super Bowls, Final Four games are played and the biggest names in the entertainment industry take the stage. It was a tremendous vision that has become a significant part of who we are as a city. I’m so excited it is thriving and setting attendance records each year and for what that means to this community.”
Desert Diamond Arena is already on record pace for 2024 with an extensive and diverse lineup of events being booked throughout the year, from concerts with high-profile artists to professional sports events, like Blink 182, WWE, Cody Johnson, Luis Miguel, and Zach Bryan, and more events being announced daily.