The Cities of Tomorrow - Stadiums, Expansion, and the Next Frontier for Sports

The future of sports is… real estate development?

Asking for money from a city to build a stadium no longer works, so owners are needing to get creative. One of the primary things they’re doing is creating multi-use development plans in tandem with their stadium plans. This takes the form of a work, live, and play area where there is a stadium, new apartments, and all of the conveniences of the modern world. These developments often require a larger investment, but also increase the probability of the investment paying off for a city.?

Meanwhile, as professional sports team valuations continue to soar team owners and leagues are looking for new ways to expand their bottom line growth to keep up with these valuations. We’ve seen things like the Packers opening up an investment fund with Microsoft to further diversify, the creation and sale of MLB’s BAM tech, and now urban planning and development for multi-use areas - often referred to as mini-cities.

The reason this is happening is because teams are starting to max out their earning potential within their core business - sports. They are being forced into new businesses to continue to grow and expand. That hot new business might just be real estate development.

Here are six of the investments being made in work, live, play developments across the world:

1. The Battery - Atlanta, Georgia

The Battery in Atlanta is anchored by Truist Park - the home of the Atlanta Braves and features the best restaurants, hotels, apartments, and entertainment venues in Atlanta all within the same 2-million-square-foot footprint. The plans for this were released in 2014 and the project was opened up in 2017.

Link to More Info: https://www.batteryatl.com/?

2. The O2 - London, England

I had the pleasure of visiting the O2 in London earlier this year for a bare-knuckle fight for one of our clients. The venue itself features multiple arenas for events, several shops and stores, restaurants, and much more. Beyond the walls of the O2, however, there is a vast development project featuring many more restaurants, hotels, and apartments for people to experience this part of London.

It is also conveniently built right on top of a transit stop for The Tube (their subway system over there).

Link to More Info: https://www.theo2.co.uk/?

3. SoFi Stadium & Hollywood Park

The Hollywood Park development project shares space with the newly-built SoFi Stadium. It's a new mecca in California and is going to feature best-in-class facilities that embody the entertainment capital of the world. Theaters, music festivals, dining, and apartments are all being built to support this new development.

Link to More Info: https://hollywoodparkca.com/

4. The Star District - Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys didn't have expansion opportunities where their main stadium is, so they built a work, live, play development around their training facility in Frisco, Texas. Imagine having a 12,000-seat in-door stadium as your practice facility.

Link to More Info: https://thestardistrict.com/

5. Nashville & Tennessee Titans

This one is in its infancy, so it's really cool to see the sketches and where they plan to develop the land. Phase 2 will be cool when they start to develop the area underneath the current stadium.

Link to More Info: https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2023/06/16/metro-nears-selection-of-a-developer-for-30-acres.html?

6. Green Bay Packers - Titletown

An anomaly in many ways, there is absolutely no reason for a professional sports team in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Yet, there they are. One of the most recognizable brands in all of sports has been expanding outside of football for quite some time. Green Bay's desire to have its real estate development bring in and retain young people and strong talent is not only a desire - it's a necessity.

Link to More Info: https://www.packers.com/news/titletown-breaks-ground-on-final-set-of-titletownhomes?