ANOTHER RECORD BREAKING YEAR FOR THE O2

08 February 2016 - Press release

2015 was a record breaking year for The O2 after being crowned the world’s busiest venue for the eighth year running and welcoming an arena attendance of 2,076,553. The 15^th millionth arena ticket was sold to an Olly Murs fan and The O2 continued to provide the best in entertainment with global artists including; One Direction, U2 and Fleetwood Mac to name just a few. Sporting events including the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, only NBA season game played outside the US and world class boxing were listed as top events of the year.

One Direction smashed a new social media record for The O2 after posing for a selfie on the venue’s Twitter Mirror backstage and was the third artist to join the new 21 Club, honouring those to have performed 21 times or more on The O2’s stage. 

First established by Prince with his ground breaking run of 21 nights in 2007, The 21 Club Key is now presented to those who have matched his total performance record, with Take That, One Direction and Michael McIntyre all joining the prestigious club last year. 

Rebecca Kane Burton, General Manager of The O2, commented “2015 was an amazing year for The O2 with new records set, new residencies established and three new members of our 21 Club.  While nobody has matched Prince’s record of a straight 21-night run, we’re delighted that our venue has played host to so many stars, so many times.  We know it’s a hit with performers and fans alike and the team is excited about 2016 with a fantastic mix of music, entertainment and sporting fixtures already in the diary.” 

Key statistics for The O2 in 2015:

·         603,398 pints and 209,913 bottles of beer sold

·         Total ticketed arena attendance reached 2,076,553.

·         50,000 country fans packed out The O2 for C2C 2015. Building on its success, the festival returns this year for three days. 

·         Up at The O2 saw 103,000 people climb the roof.

·         Over 200,000 Elvis fans enjoyed getting up close with his personal possessions at the Elvis at The O2 exhibition.

·         Becks draught topped the overall food and drink sales with 217,733 purchases.

·         Buxton bottled water came in second with 216,019 purchases.

·         Classic chips were the most popular food item reaching sales of 65,922.

·         Grill Street burgers came in second with 26,099 purchases.

Additional highlights from 2015:

A host of awards were won in 2015 including Pollstar’s ‘International Venue of the Year’, Cool Awards’ ‘Coolest Conference Centre’ and Billboard Touring Awards’ ‘Top Arena’, to name a few. 

Some exciting new spaces were announced at The O2 including The Quadrant which host the likes of the Moscow State Circus and the British Street Food Festival. The aviation-themed bar, NY-LON, was also added to provide cocktails, private dining and VIP treatment to visitors of The O2. 

The double Grammy and double Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe winner, AR Rahman returned to The O2 after five years. The sold out event brought together the stars of Bollywood and its myriad of dance and music to London, and will be returning to The O2 in 2016.

Two new boats travelled 15,000 miles from Australia to join the ever growing MBNA Thames Clippers fleet. The boats, named Galaxy and Neptune, provide luxury seating with extra leg room to 150 people.

Conference Week was announced for September 2016, proving The O2’s dedication to supporting corporate brands as well as major music and sporting events

The Elvis exhibition treated fans to an intimate peek at the rock and roll icon’s treasured possessions, with 300 artefacts shipped straight from the archives of Graceland. The exhibition saw over 200,000 fans visit from all over Europe to witness his iconic outfits, classic cars and lavish lifestyle.