Lanxess Arena

LANXESS arena

Former names	Kölnarena (1998–2008)
Location	Deutz, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Coordinates	50°56′18.59″N 6°58′58.63″E / 50.9384972°N 6.9829528°E / 50.9384972; 6.9829528
Public transit	Köln Messe/Deutz Bahnhof Deutz/LANXESS arena
Owner	Immobilienfonds Köln-Deutz Arena, Mantelbebauung GbR
Operator	Arena Management GmbH
Capacity	20,000 (concerts) 19,500 (handball) 18,500 (hockey)
Surface	Parquetry, ice
Construction
Broke ground	July 31, 1996 (1996-07-31)
Opened	October 5, 1998 (1998-10-05)
Construction cost	€ 153 million
Architect	Peter Böhm[1]
Tenants
Kölner Haie (DEL) (1998–present) EHF Champions League (2010–present)
Website
lanxess-arena.de (in German)

Lanxess Arena (stylized as LANXESS arena; originally Kölnarena, German for "Cologne arena") is an indoor arena, in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is known as the 18,500-capacity home of the Kölner Haie and as one of Germany's major music venues. As of 2019, Lanxess Arena was the highest-attended arena worldwide, with 699,924 tickets sold.^[2] The arena is spanned by a notable steel arch supporting the roof via steel cables. The height of the arch is 76 m (249 ft) and its weight is 480 tons.

On June 2, 2008, it was announced that Kölnarena would be renamed Lanxess Arena, for a period of ten years.^[3] The sponsor, Lanxess AG, is a specialty chemicals group based in the Lanxess Tower in Deutz, Cologne. This naming-rights deal was extended in 2017 until December 31, 2023. Then in October 2023, it was announced that the cooperation between the arena and Lanxess had been extended for another 5 years until 2028.

The arena is primarily used by Kölner Haie (ice hockey), VfL Gummersbach (handball), Köln RheinStars (basketball), and as a concert venue.

Lanxess Arena has been one of the top entertainment venues in Cologne since its opening. Many international artists have performed at the venue, spanning a wide range of music genres. Artists that have performed their concerts at the venue are listed in the table below.

• The arena was used for the 2007 World Men's Handball Championship, including the third place game and the final game.

• On June 13, 2009, the Ultimate Fighting Championships held UFC 99 at the Lanxess Arena.^[31] This was the first time the UFC had made its way to Germany.

• From 2010, the arena host the handball EHF Champions League Final Four.

• The arena was one of the venues for the 2010 IIHF World Championship, including both semi-finals, the Bronze medal game and the Championship game.

• On August 22–23, 2015, the arena hosted ESL One Cologne 2015, one of three major Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournaments to be held throughout 2015.^[32]

• On July 5–10, 2016, the arena hosted ESL One Cologne 2016, the second $1,000,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive major tournament.

• From May 5–21, 2017, the arena co-hosted the IIHF ice hockey world championship, including all the final games.^[33]

• On July 7–9, 2017, the arena hosted ESL One Cologne 2017, a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament with a prize pool of $250,000.^[34]

• From July 6–8, 2018, the arena hosted ESL One Cologne 2018. This event earned Lanxess Arena the nickname “The Cathedral Of Counter-Strike”.

• On October 8, 2018, the arena hosted an exhibition ice hockey game between Kölner Haie and the Edmonton Oilers, part of the 2018 NHL Global Series Challenge.

• On July 5–7, 2019, the arena hosted another edition of the ESL One Cologne, a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament with a prize pool of $300,000.

• From July 12–13, 2019, the arena will host the 2019 German Darts Masters, part of the Professional Darts Corporation World Series.

• From May 22–24, 2020, the arena will host the 2020 Euroleague Final Four, part of Euroleague Basketball.

• In 2020 the arena hosted back-to-back ATP 250 events: from October 11–18, Bett1Hulks Indoors, and from October 17–25, Bett1Hulks Championship.

• From July 15–17, 2022, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive returned to the arena after a two–year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, under the moniker IEM Cologne 2022, as ESL merged their ESL One brand into their Intel Extreme Masters brand. The event offered an increased prize pool of $1,000,000.

• The venue hosted some group phase matches at the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 which the country and Berlin alongside Czech Republic in Prague, Georgia in Tbilisi and Italy in Milan.

• The annual Counter-Strike: Global Offensive event, IEM Cologne 2023, returned to the venue on August 4 to 6, 2023, when the prize pool offered was once again $1,000,000, matching that of the previous year. The winners, G2 Esports, took first place and $400,000.

• List of indoor arenas in Germany
• List of European ice hockey arenas
• List of indoor arenas by capacity

Media related to Lanxess Arena at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website (in German)