Venue News: T-Mobile Arena Opens on Las Vegas Strip; IOC Reports 2016 Rio Olympic Venue Construction Nearly Complete

T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat state-of-the-art venue on the Las Vegas Strip, opened Wednesday night with a concert headlined by Las Vegas rockers The Killers and featuring the city’s nightclub legend Wayne Newton, who offered “Viva Las Vegas,” and “My Way.” AEG, which built Staples Center, L.A. Live, and London’s O2 arena, partnered with MGM Resorts to build the $375-million T-Mobile Arena, which has immediately drawn a string of major concerts, writes the Los Angeles Times. Meanwhile, Las Vegas and Quebec City are the two finalists to land an NHL expansion franchise, with a decision expected in the near future…

…NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has long said that the primary two things a city needs to be considered for an expansion franchise is a suitable owner and arena. Las Vegas, long rumored to land an expansion team that could begin playing in the fall of 2017, has always had a strong potential owner in billionaire Bill Foley. As of Wednesday, the would-be Las Vegas NHL team also has its own facility — the T-Mobile Arena. ESPN.com lays out the venue’s hockey-specific features that could help it lure an NHL franchise…

…In what is emerging as a rare bright spot in Brazil, a country buffeted by crisis on all sides, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is saying that more than 95% of the venues for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games are complete some four months ahead of the opening ceremony. And even more important, data shows spending has largely remained under control. A photo gallery posted to The National shows the progress made in venue construction prior to the Rio Olympics…

…The Minnesota Vikings have hired VenueNext to create an integrated app for U.S. Bank Stadium aimed at giving fans a seamless gameday experience that could start in their driveways and direct them to beer, food, and restrooms, writes the Star Tribune. The stadium is now less than four months from opening in time for the 2016 Vikings’ season. VenueNext is creating the platform that integrates all sorts of information and help for fans as well as “robust video content.” It’s the latter that will make the app unique among NFL teams…

…Oklahoma held a “topping off” ceremony Friday to recognize the ongoing renovation to the south end of Owen Field. Flintco workers lowered a beam from a crane onto the highest point of the stadium’s reconstruction — atop what will eventually be the new scoreboard — about 152 feet off the ground. It was symbolic, mostly, but still an excuse to laud how the new-and-improved stadium is going to benefit the OU program moving forward, writes Tulsa World…

…The New York Islanders and Brooklyn’s Barclays Center both have the ability to opt out of their 25-year license agreement, according to multiple sources familiar with the terms. Despite the existence of the clause, though, there are no indications that either side will opt out. The Islanders could leave Barclays Center at the conclusion of the fourth year, should either side choose to opt out, the sources said. It is not clear when the sides would have to make a decision about exercising the clause…

…Salisbury University officially debuted its new $19 million stadium at an open house earlier this month, writes the Baltimore Business Journal. The four-story Sea Gull Stadium replaces the university’s outdated, single-story stadium and brings in-house team facilities that previously had to be located off-site. The 30,000-square-foot,stadium has four home-team locker rooms for the university’s Division III field hockey, football, and men’s and women’s lacrosse teams…

…Texas Rangers have installed Eaton’s Advanced Ephesus Light-Emitting Diode (LED) system at Globe Life Park in Arlington, TX. The system features control functions that will enhance the viewing experience for spectators while reducing energy use by as much as 60%. The new solid-state lighting system features Ephesus Stadium Pro lights and a DMX control system, and readily interfaces with many common lighting and theatrical devices. It is expandable to allow the system to control and perform in harmony with other in-venue systems such as the scoreboard, ribbon boards, and more…

…Pro Sound, a Florida-based AV integrator with extensive experience in sports and entertainment venues across the US, and Userful, a leader in centralized display software, announced the implementation of a series of state-of-the-art mosaic-style video walls at the Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay, FL; home of the Tampa Bay Lightning. A part of the arena’s 2015-16 upgrade, Pro Sound has deployed a series of four unique mosaic-style video walls strategically located throughout the arena. Thanks to the innovative and flexible Userful solution, they were able to turn standard video walls into pieces of art with unique artistic layouts that showcase stunning views of the city and other local attractions at Ultra-high definition 4K resolution.