Co-op Live Manchester Tickets

Co-op Live events and its Manchester opening

Co-op Live opened in May 2024 with a hometown performance by Elbow. The opening week also included The Black Keys, Eric Clapton and Barry Manilow, establishing a music-led programme at the Etihad Campus venue.

Live performance shaped the building from the outset. Its arena floor, lower ceiling and tiered seating were conceived together as a music-focused environment, with both standing and seated audiences forming part of the design. Flexible layouts allow the space to accommodate different productions.

A rectangular, three-tier sound bowl

Populous designed a rectangular seating bowl with three tiers, arranging the seats around the performance area. The architects set a maximum seat-to-stage distance of 95 metres within that bowl configuration, making the relationship between the stage and surrounding seats central to the design.

Inside, a black-box approach keeps the visual focus on the performance. The architects deliberately left permanent ribbon screens and corporate branding out of the bowl. Outside, the building has a very different appearance: a programmable digital halo and large LED screens are integrated into its angular façade.

Interior spaces and the arena experience

Jump Studios, the interior-design arm of Populous, worked on interiors drawing on Manchester's music and nightlife culture. The venue combines that local reference with technology and acoustics developed for large live performances.

Vertu Place is a gathering area for general-admission customers, with food-market spaces and a long bar. Other named areas include the Co-op Backstage Club and Hideaway. Hideaway also combines dining and live entertainment in a concept curated by chef Simon Rimmer. These are distinct spaces within the wider venue, alongside the main performance bowl, rather than different names for the same auditorium.

For other music destinations, explore concerts on TixChoice. The event listings on this page provide the dates and performances currently available for comparison.

Reaching the Etihad Campus

The address is 1 Sports City Way, Manchester. Etihad Campus tram stop is beside the venue on the Ashton-Piccadilly line. From Piccadilly, the step-free CityLink walking route passes through Ancoats, New Islington and Holt Town, marked by blue lampposts. The venue's travel information brings together tram, walking, cycling and road options for reaching the campus.