AEG Unveils Russian Front

Four months after AEG European vice president of facilities Brian Kabatznick let slip his company had an eye on Moscow, his company has revealed that it will run the city’s new VTB Arena.

A July 19 statement confirmed the U.S.-based venue operator and entertainment business has inked a multi-year agreement to provide comprehensive services for the new venue, being built in the city’s Petrovsky Park.

It was late February when Kabatznick told Pollstar he had plans for Moscow but cited confidentiality reasons for not elaborating.

The KTB will have a 45,000-seat soccer stadium that will be home to Dynamo Moscow Football Club and a 2018 FIFA World Cup venue, plus a 12,000-seat arena for hockey and basketball.

Both rooms will be designed and equipped at a high-end level to host top-rank, world-class events.

VTB Arena chairman Andrei Peregoudov says the $1.5 billion project will be completed some time in 2016.

AEG’s contribution will include the provision of venue services. Its Facilities division will provide comprehensive venue services including design input and advice on the development of quality operating standards for sporting events, concerts and shows.

AEG Facilities chief ops officer Bob Newman says the development will be the first of its kind in the region and he sees great potential and opportunity for success in such “a dynamic marketplace.”

The VTB Arena was originally founded in 2010 by VTB Bank, one of the largest financial institutions in Russia, with the support of local authorities and the Moscow soccer business.