[News Spot] Las Vegas's New Attraction 'Sphere'

MSG, a Masterpiece with $2.3 Billion Construction Cost Over 7 Years
Las Vegas' New Landmark, Big Success with NFL Hosting Next Year

'Sphere' is the world's largest state-of-the-art performance venue, located in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. It is a massive architectural structure literally shaped like a 'sphere,' designed to resemble the Earth.

The official name is 'MSG Sphere.' It is regarded as a masterpiece created by Madison Square Garden (MSG), an American sports and entertainment company, which invested a total construction cost of $2.3 billion (approximately 3 trillion KRW) over seven years starting in 2018.

Sphere, the Las Vegas performance venue viewed from afar.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

With a height of 112 meters, comparable to a 40-story apartment building, and a floor diameter of 157 meters, it is a spherical arena equivalent to two soccer fields. The framework is built with 3,000 tons of steel and 10,000 tons of concrete, and the exterior walls are covered with LED panels capable of displaying high-definition images and videos. Inside, a high-resolution LED screen wraps around half of the ceiling in a curved shape, and 160,000 speakers are installed to provide the ultimate immersive experience.

With 18,600 seats, since its opening in September last year, it has hosted concerts, shows, various performances, and events, establishing itself as a new landmark in Las Vegas. The recent concert by the Irish rock band U2 had ticket prices ranging from a minimum of $500 to a maximum of $1,000.

In the evening, the exterior is used as a dazzling billboard, and due to its enormous size, advertisements can be seen from anywhere in downtown Las Vegas. MSG Sphere stated, "As it is designed as a space to share art, half of the time non-commercial video works are screened, and advertisements are shown only during the other half."

'MSG Sphere' is showcasing spectacular sights ahead of 'CES 2024,' the world's largest electronics and information technology (IT) exhibition opening on the 9th (local time) in Las Vegas, asserting its presence.

Last September, visitors are watching the documentary film "Postcards from Earth" at the Sphere's indoor performance hall.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The competition for advertising space on the Sphere among companies participating in 'CES 2024' is fierce. Coinciding with the event's opening, the Sphere transforms into a brilliant digital outdoor billboard at night, featuring advertisements for Samsung Galaxy S24 and TCL, attracting attention from local visitors.

TCL aired its advertisement on the Sphere from the evening of the 6th to the morning of the 7th, two days before the opening. Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics began showing promotional videos for the Galaxy S24, which will be unveiled next week, on the Sphere from the afternoon of the 8th, the day before the official opening of CES 2024. The afternoon of the 8th is a prime time for pre-events, drawing significant attention from attendees.

The average advertising cost on the Sphere is enormous, reaching about $450,000 (592 million KRW) for a 4-hour daily exposure. If repeated exposure totals 8 hours over a week, the cost rises to $650,000, and it is expected that advertising fees during the CES 2024 period, when visitors flock, will be even higher.

This year's CES is expected to attract 130,000 attendees, and the MSG Sphere, as a hub of innovative technologies showcased at CES, is playing a significant role in drawing tourists to Las Vegas, according to the local tourism industry.

One month after CES closes, on the 11th of next month, the Sphere will host the Super Bowl, one of the world's largest sports events watched by 100 million viewers in the US alone. Las Vegas, which attracted 300,000 people over three days last November for the world's largest motorsport race, the 'F1 Grand Prix,' has hit the jackpot by successfully bringing the NFL to the Sphere.