GUEST COLUMN:
Ewan Smith
Associate
Arup
According to Goldman Sachs' latest Music In The Air report, the live music industry demonstrates a robust growth outlook, with the sector expected to grow at a 7.2% CAGR through 2030. The enduring power of live entertainment is creating transformative opportunities across the UK, demonstrating how strategic entertainment infrastructure can drive economic regeneration.
The Cardiff Arena represents Wales' entry into this transformative venue development trend. The new 16,500-capacity entertainment venue – developed by Robertson Group, with Live Nation as operators – forms the centrepiece of the ambitious Atlantic Wharf masterplan, having secured planning consent in February 2023.
With construction drawings now issued and enabling works underway, the Arena is set to deliver significant community benefits for Cardiff Bay and beyond. The wider masterplan encompasses up to 890 residential dwellings, 1,090 hotel rooms, 19,500 square metres of employment floorspace and extensive leisure and retail facilities. Crucially, the scheme will enable the redevelopment of the existing Utilita Arena site in Cardiff city centre, creating a ripple effect of regeneration opportunities across the capital.
The development of such projects is no easy feat. Their complexity requires multidisciplinary expertise spanning civil, structural, planning, fire, transport, utilities, BREEAM, geotechnical and mass motion crowd simulation. Arup’s comprehensive design input across all of these elements is crucial to ensuring the Cardiff Arena meets the needs of its modern community – both today, and into the future.
Engineering innovation for the needs of today
Modern venues must serve evolving needs rather than being designed solely for opening night. The Cardiff Arena is doing this through innovative engineering approaches; the single-tier bowl configuration can adapt to host everything from intimate conferences to major international concerts and exhibitions. This flexibility is crucial for maximising the venue's utilisation and strengthening the business case for the wider regeneration projects.
Early collaboration between Arup and Live Nation on the project has enabled operator requirements to be embedded into the scheme from the outset, achieving innovations in flexibility, configuration, catering and hospitality provision. We see this approach as key to ensuring venues are commercially viable from day one.
Sustainability considerations have also been prioritised throughout the design process to ensure it continues to meet modern expectations, with BREEAM compliance ensuring the venue meets the highest environmental standards. This includes optimising solar energy use and integrating comprehensive transport planning to manage the movement of up to 16,500 spectators.
Boosting the economy
For Welsh businesses, the development of the Cardiff Arena represents significant opportunities across multiple sectors. The construction phase alone will generate substantial contracts for local firms, creating employment and economic benefits throughout the supply chain.
Once operational, the venue is expected to attract over one million visitors annually, creating demand for hospitality, transport, retail and professional services. Integration with the wider Atlantic Wharf development amplifies these opportunities, with the masterplan designed to accommodate business conferences, exhibitions, and corporate events alongside entertainment programming.
The tourism potential is particularly significant. Wales' events sector already delivers impressive returns: cultural and sporting events supported by Welsh Government generated more than £40 million for the economy in 2024, representing a ten-to-one return on investment.
Building for communities
Modern venue development increasingly recognises the importance of community benefit from the engineering phase onwards, ensuring new venues are seen as integral parts of their locations rather than impositions. The Cardiff Arena project is an example of this in action, having prioritised working alongside local communities throughout the planning process.
This includes ensuring that jobs and opportunities reach nearby communities, and that spaces are designed for both local people and visitors. Nurturing local talent development has been particularly important for the Cardiff project, from supporting schoolchildren through to local businesses.
The building design itself has also taken a community-first mindset. It carefully balances protecting sunlight and privacy for neighbouring properties while maximising use of solar energy and other sustainability measures. It also considers the noise impact on residents, with the use of mass motion crowd simulation alongside traditional acoustic modelling ensuring the venue delivers world-class sound experiences for audiences whilst minimising noise impacts on surrounding communities.
Engineering for Wales' future
The Cardiff Arena represents more than infrastructure investment – it demonstrates Wales' ambitions as a destination for major events and business. The engineering and planning work supports this vision: the venue's flexible design, local focus and integration with wider regeneration plans position it to drive economic growth extending far beyond Cardiff Bay. For Welsh businesses and investors, this represents the beginning of a new chapter in the country's economic development story.
With construction now underway and doors scheduled to open in 2028, this project positions Wales as a leader in community-focused venue engineering. The integrated approach to design, sustainability and community benefit makes the Cardiff Arena a blueprint for how major infrastructure projects can transform communities and drive sustainable economic growth for decades to come.
