As 2017 comes to a close, we’re taking a look at venues that reigned supreme over the past year when it came to ticket sales.
New York City institutions made up a quarter of the overall list, including the No. 1 spot, which unsurprisingly belongs to the World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden. As a frequent concert haven, home to both the Rangers and the Knicks, and host to a myriad of other special events annually, MSG boasts hefty sales year-to-year and once again remains the most popular venue to take in an event.
The Big Apple was also represented by the Barclays Center, which like MSG also serves as the home to local NBA (Nets) and NHL (Islanders) teams. In addition, three Broadway theaters were able to compete with major stadiums and arenas to land on the year-end list: the Shubert Theatre, Music Box Theatre and Richard Rodgers Theatre, which house the smash shows Hello Dolly!, Dear Evan Hansen, and Hamilton, respectively.
Some of the year’s biggest sporting events played a huge role in ticket sales and therefore boosting certain venues’ rank among this list, most notably the No. 2 Dodger Stadium and No. 4 NRG Stadium. The World Series may not have gone the Dodgers way in the end, but millions of fans flocked to Los Angeles to take in the final games in what was one of the best-selling events of the year. Houston’s NRG Stadium drew in a full-capacity 71,000 fans in February as the site of Super Bowl LI, which undoubtedly helped the venue land within the top five. The Stanley Cup Finals likely helped Bridgestone Arena nab the No. 13 spot, as fans packed the arena for three games out of the series in hopes of witnessing the Nashville Predators win their first Cup in franchise history.
Other top-selling venues include Fenway Park, Philly’s Wells Fargo Center and Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.
See the overall breakdown below.
2017 Top Selling Venues
- Madison Square Garden – New York, NY
- Dodger Stadium – Los Angeles, CA
- T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, NV
- NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
- AT&T Stadium – Arlington, TX
- Wells Fargo Center – Philadelphia, PA
- Staples Center – Los Angeles, CA
- TD Garden – Boston, MA
- Shubert Theatre – New York, NY
- Caesars Palace Colosseum – Las Vegas, NV
- Minute Maid Park – Houston, TX
- Fenway Park – Boston, MA
- Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN
- Barclays Center – Brooklyn, NY
- Music Box Theatre – New York, NY
- Toyota Center – Houston TX
- American Airlines Arena – Miami, FL
- Hard Rock Stadium – Miami, FL
- Richard Rodgers Theatre – New York, NY
- United Center – Chicago, IL
