SKA Arena (21.542), St.Petersburg, Russia - largest hockey arena in the world

[vorky]

Today was the first test match of university select teams on a brand-new SKA Arena in St.Petersburg, Russia. Its capacity is 21.542 seats for a hockey game, while full capacity for concerts is 23.000 seats. It is the largest hockey arena in the world currently being used in top tier senior leagues. The arena will host the first official event on December 9-10 with the KHL All-Star. It is unclear when SKA will move to play their home KHL games on that venue. It was designed by Vienna-based architecture firm Coop Himmelb(l)au.

A few pictures & videos









official website

Click to read more...

 

[Albatros]

At their previous arena they were below 80 % capacity, now they have a chance of being under 50 %.

 

[vorky]

 

[vorky]

At their previous arena they were below 80 % capacity, now they have a chance of being under 50 %.

SKA has an occupancy of 98.06% at their current arena (Ledovy Dvorets) this regular season, updated today.

And, btw, Tappara & Ilves playing at new big venue as well, their occupancy is 63.76% (Tappara) and 56.87% (Ilves) this regular season.

 

[Kshahdoo]

At their previous arena they were below 80 % capacity, now they have a chance of being under 50 %.

SKA is pretty inconsistent this season so people don't fill the arena as good as usual. Then there's playoffs and games vs rivals like Moscow clubs, which are way more popular than ordinary games.

 

[JianYang]

Nice.

The exterior sort of reminds me of the "bird's nest" from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

 

[vorky]

Nice.

The exterior sort of reminds me of the "bird's nest" from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

I forgot to mention that SKA Arena is built on a place of former SKK Peterburgskiy, which was demolished. Picture below.

I will quote what the Austrian architecture company says about the SKA Arena design:

The design of the new SKA Arena follows the tradition of Russian constructivism. Russian artists such as Tatlin and El Lissitzky inspired architects worldwide and redefined the level of artistic aspiration in architecture. The design of the SKA Arena follows the tradition of the unique era of constructivism, where everything was possible, and applies its expressive, open design language to a contemporary context: the filigree framework of its construction, based on “Tatlin's Tower”, refers to the flowing, dynamic movement of a person skating around the stadium.

Tatlin's Tower that was never built ...

 

[vorky]

 

[Boonk]

Looks like a spaceship

 

[vorky]

Looks like a spaceship

Yes, Space/Cosmos is main topic of the arena. And the bonus is its location on Yuri Gagarin Prospekt.

 

[IU Hawks fan]

Upper level looks steep.

 

[jetsmooseice]

What is ticket pricing like for KHL games? Do they follow the increasingly prevalent North American model of ratcheting up prices as much as the market will bear? Or is it more the old school charge a reasonable price and make money on sheer volume?

 

[vorky]

What is ticket pricing like for KHL games? Do they follow the increasingly prevalent North American model of ratcheting up prices as much as the market will bear? Or is it more the old school charge a reasonable price and make money on sheer volume?

It depends on tier of opponent and other factors. I made a quick research, not complete, see below. Just a single ticket for upcoming games, no season-tickets or sky-boxes/VIP Lounge.

PRICE IN RUSSIAN RUBLE (if not other currency in bracket)

SKA: 350 to 3000
Spartak Msc: 400 to 5800
Sochi: 300 to 4000
Dinamo Minsk: 10 to 60 (Belarusian ruble)
Dynamo Msc: 300 to 3000
Lokomotiv: 200 to 2100
CSKA: 200 to 2000
Ak Bars: 300 to 2500
Metallurg: 250 to 1100
Traktor: 300 to 1000
Avangard: 300 to 2300
Amur: 400 to 2500
Barys: 1200 to 4200 (Tenge)
Salavat Yulaev: 300 to 1450
Sibir: 200 to 2100

 

[GindyDraws]

It depends on tier of opponent and other factors. I made a quick research, not complete, see below. Just a single ticket of upcoming games, no season-tickets or sky-boxes/VIP Lounge.

PRICE IN RUSSIAN RUBLE (if not other currency in bracket)

SKA: 350 to 3000
Spartak Msc: 400 to 5800
Sochi: 300 to 4000
Dinamo Minsk: 10 to 60 (Belarusian ruble)
Dynamo Msc: 300 to 3000
Lokomotiv: 200 to 2100
CSKA: 200 to 2000
Ak Bars: 300 to 2500
Metallurg: 250 to 1100
Traktor: 300 to 1000
Avangard: 300 to 2300
Amur: 400 to 2500
Barys: 1200 to 4200 (Tenge)
Salavat Yulaev: 300 to 1450
Sibir: 200 to 2100

And they practically pay you to watch Kunlun

 

[Kshahdoo]

And they practically pay you to watch Kunlun

Nah, people always come to SKA. Of course Kunlun games aren't as popular as CSKA's, but still there are a lot of people in arena so there is no point to give tickets away for nothing.

 

[vorky]

 

[Jumptheshark]

At their previous arena they were below 80 % capacity, now they have a chance of being under 50 %.

I liked the old one. I was there for the world championships in 2016

 

[Acallabeth]

What is ticket pricing like for KHL games? Do they follow the increasingly prevalent North American model of ratcheting up prices as much as the market will bear? Or is it more the old school charge a reasonable price and make money on sheer volume?

KHL tickets are much more affordable. SKA season tickets for all home games and playoffs start at around ₽12k, which is maybe $130 with the current exchange rate.
Then again, the KHL isn't a strictly commercial league like the NHL.

 

[Kshahdoo]

KHL tickets are much more affordable. SKA season tickets for all home games and playoffs start at around ₽12k, which is maybe $130 with the current exchange rate.
Then again, the KHL isn't a strictly commercial league like the NHL.

12k rubles isn't for the full season though. Better sits cost up to 34k rubles. Still laughable money by NHL standarts.

 

[vorky]

SKA Arena one day before KHL All Star Game

 

[Golden_Jet]

Can it be configured for NA size ice as well, or the Finns hybrid size.

 

[vorky]

Can it be configured for NA size ice as well, or the Finns hybrid size.

The arena use the NHL/NA size ice already. Generally all KHL clubs have switched to NA or FIN rink size in latest seasons. Of course, SKA Arena has the possibility to use all three types of ice surface - Olympic/IIHF, Finnish and NHL/NA.

 

[vorky]

Tour

 

[vorky]

 

[vorky]