What a difference a year makes. After a difficult post-pandemic opening in late 2022, UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y., has found its footing in its sophomore year, nearly doubling its year-over-year gross on Billboard’s 2024 mid-year rankings and finding its stride in the busy New York Metro market.
At the mid-year point in 2023, UBS Arena had posted $22 million in gross concert receipts from 39 shows. This year, the venue has posted $42 million in gross receipts from 56 shows.
That success comes from building off 2023 sellouts that included two nights of Bruce Springsteen, two nights of SUGA and shows from Blink-182, Peso Pluma, Aerosmith and Billy Joel. In 2024, UBS has already seen sellouts from Stevie Nicks, Elevation Worship, Machel Montano, ENHYPEN, Aventura (two nights), Drake (two nights) and Zach Bryan (two nights).
Delayed by pandemic-related construction issues, including the Metropolitan Transportation Authority missing a key date to connect the venue to the Long Island Rail Road, UBS Arena struggled with attendance early on.
“There was really no playbook on how to open an arena in the most competitive major market in the world during a pandemic,” says Mark Shulman, senior vp of programming at the Oak View Group-managed arena, which was built in partnership with the New York Islanders.
“You can take everything that we know about how to launch a venue and you throw it all out because so many of those strategies just weren’t feasible at the time,” Shulman adds of the 745,000-square-foot, 17,200-seat hockey and entertainment arena designed by Populos and constructed by Aecom Hunt. “But what was undeniable is that UBS Arena is a world-class, stunningly beautiful and acoustically superior venue. And we had a highly experienced team that we assembled. We had the right people for the challenge.”
The first order of business was tapping into the diversity of Nassau County and the nearby borough of Queens, “which are some of the most diverse areas in America,” says Shulman. “They have residents coming from 120 countries. They speak 130 languages. We spend a lot time developing inclusive programming that reflects that diversity and we’ve had great success with not only rock, pop and country, but also Caribbean, soca, K-pop, C-pop and artists from India.”
UBS Arena’s large 430-acre campus at Belmont Park is a rare asset in the New York market “that’s become a fantastic activation space for artists and their fans,” Shulman says. During the Zach Bryan shows, held on March 30 and 31, the country star’s father, Dwayne, “hosted events outside for fans and actually discovered a local artist who ended up performing on the show the next night,” Shulman adds.
Another example of this came on May 3, when UBS hosted K-pop group ENHYPEN and put on “a full day of activities where the fans could meet up, play games, create art and dance to their favorite music,” Shulman says. “We love seeing artists and fans take advantage of all that UBS Arena and the campus have to offer.”
The hard work involved in establishing the venue is set to culminate with two massive upcoming events. The first is the MTV Video Music Awards, which will be held at UBS Aarena on Sept. 10, marking the show’s return to New York.
“The team at MTV is designing a completely new show and really going to utilize every space in the building and the park outside,” says Shulman, including the full arena bowl, all seven of the venue’s club spaces and the venue’s two outdoor terraces.
UBS Arena will also host the 2026 NHL All-Star Game, as announced by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman during the NFL Winter Classic on Jan. 1.
A big selling point for UBS Arena, Shulman adds, are the different experiences that can be hosted within the building, including the American Express Lounge speakeasy and the Heineken Terrace, which hosts large parties and group dinners. The arena even features sensory spaces designed by Northwell Health for guests of any age who may have sensory processing sensitivities. Open for all arena events, each room features custom hand-painted murals, special sensory equipment including a Vecta machine, infinity tunnels, heat sensitivity play panels and gel floor tiles along with a customizable sound system and bean bag chairs.
Says Shulman, “Our goal is to create a space that is comfortable for everyone and meets the entire needs of the community.”
