MSG Sphere Las Vegas is the world’s largest spherical structure, standing 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide. Its exterior is covered in 580,000 square feet of LED screens, and its interior features a 16K LED display.
This immersive entertainment arena, built at a cost of $2.3 billion, is also Las Vegas’ most expensive sports venue, surpassing the $1.9 billion Allegiant Stadium.
MSG Sphere Las Vegas, a Madison Square Garden project, opened on September 29, 2023, with a total seating capacity of up to 18,600 guests, including 23 executive suites.
Designed to host a variety of events, including concerts, sporting events, award shows, and films, MSG Sphere Las Vegas is also expected to be a popular destination for corporate events and product launches.
MSG Sphere Overview
- Address: 255 Sands Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89169
- Owner: Madison Square Garden Entertainment
- Attractions: Sporting Events, Concerts, Award Shows, Films, Product Launches, & ‘Light’ Shows on the Exterior
A lot of people visiting have been wondering what the big sphere in Las Vegas is. If you happen to be walking east of the Palazzo and Venetian resort, then you have noticed the conspicuous behemoth of a sphere just at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip. That, my friend, is the MSG Sphere.
Officially known as the Sphere, the gigantic structure had a soft debut on Independence Day 2023 bringing to glory the billions of investments that promised to light up the Vegas skyline more than it already was!
Over the several weeks following the 4th of July, the Sphere showcased its full might on its tall spherical exterior filled with LED displays, displaying immersive images and videos that covered its entire spherical surface.
Displays ranged from an electrified earth, a desolate moon, the red mars, an astronaut in space, a huge eyeball, and perhaps the best of all, a huge NBA 2023 Summer League Basketball. Other captivating shots that kept motorists on the streets include a colorful firework show and a rotating American flag render.
Take a look at this YouTube video showcasing a Las Vegas Sphere basketball, eyeball, earth, moon, mars, space, and other interesting images:
It is not a simple feat to embark on a project that competes with Vegas’ mightiest builds; from Bellagio’s dancing fountains to Western Hemisphere’s second-tallest observation tower, to the world’s most powerful man-made-light at Luxor Las Vegas.
Developed by Maddison Square Garden (MSG) Entertainment, Sphere started out as a project aimed at discovering how MSG could create the biggest show on earth that would push the boundaries of modern technologies and give viewers the most immersive experience.
In 2018, the project grew into a joint partnership between the Las Vegas Sands Corporation and MSG bringing Las Vegas a work of art and engineering.
Sphere is regarded as the future of entertainment and storytelling, allowing live entertainers to perform on a scale that has never been seen before. It is a stage for those who want to tell stories on the biggest canvas in the world.
The Sands Corporation contributed the 18-acre land on which the project is being constructed – in Paradise, Nevada, east of Sands Corp’s Venetian Resort, east of Sands Expo & Convention Center, and just a few miles off the Vegas Strip.
2021 was the estimated year of completion, but the work was affected in terms of supply chains and working conditions, pushing the completion to 2023.
MSG Sphere Design & Layout
The MSG Sphere’s unique design is inspired by the natural world. The dome-shaped structure is reminiscent of a giant planet; the exterior LED screens is used to display stunning images while the interior is designed with a wraparound LED screen for an immersive experience that will make audiences feel like they are part of the action.
Exterior
- Dimensions: 366 feet tall, 516 feet wide.
- Area: 875,000 square feet
- Exterior LED Display Size: 580,000 square feet
- Dome Weight: over 13,000 tons
The Sphere’s exterior surface is an attraction in and of itself that has forever changed the appearance and marvel of the Las Vegas Strip skyline. At 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide, it is a hard building to miss, and the advertisements blasting on the exterior LED display light up the city.
It spreads across 580,000 square feet, all of which is covered in programmable lighting.
In addition to its aesthetic appeal, the Sphere’s exterior LED screen is also a major revenue generator for the company. It is one of the largest advertising spaces in the world, and businesses are eager to pay top dollar to have their products and services seen by the millions of people who pass by the Sphere each day.
One of the most mesmerizing aspects of the Sphere’s LED screen is its ability to create the illusion of depth.
By using different colors and brightness levels, the screen can create the illusion of objects floating in space or receding into the distance. This effect can be used to create a variety of different experiences, such as flying through a cityscape or exploring a vast alien landscape.
With such a unique offering, expect it to become one of the free attractions in Las Vegas. Plans are in place to ensure the Sphere offers an only-in-Las Vegas experience through its exterior programmable lighting. You won’t need to enter the premises to have a taste of its world-class status.
The exterior illuminates the Vegas skyline every day and night with various animations and imagery based around themes and events. For example, giant pumpkins will be displayed on Halloween while Christmas light shows will fill the entire surface in December.
As part of the exterior design, there is a 1,000-foot bridge for pedestrians that connects guests to the Venetian Expo. Future plans will also see a Las Vegas Monorail station outside specifically built for the MSG Sphere.
Fun Fact: The 4th largest crawler crane in the world – the DEMAG CC-8800 – was used in the construction of the MSG Sphere Las Vegas and had to be assembled on-site due to its massive size.
Interior
- Capacity: 18,600 seated, 20,000 standing
- Levels: 9
- Suites: 23 VIP luxury suites
- Interior LED Screen Size: 160,000 square feet – 16K Display
- Sound System: 167,000 speakers, including 1,600 Holoplot X1 speakers
The interior features the world’s highest resolution and largest LED display with a 16K resolution measuring 19,000 by 13,500 pixels and covering an area of 160,000 square feet.
It is the only wraparound screen of its kind, capable of displaying stunning 360-degree visuals that can transport audiences to other worlds. It is 100 times crisper and more detailed than the best world-class HD TVs in the market.
The LED screen is made up of billions of tiny pixels that can be individually controlled to create a wide range of effects. This allows for the creation of truly immersive experiences that make the audiences engulfed in the action.
Another trippy aspect of the Sphere’s LED screen is its ability to create the illusion of movement. By displaying images in rapid succession, the screen can create the illusion of objects moving around the room. This effect can be used to create a variety of different experiences, such as watching a race car zoom past or being surrounded by a swirling vortex.
To comfortably house its guests, the MSG Sphere will include an advanced Wi-Fi system with 1,100 access points. The high-tech connectivity is capable of serving 25 Megabits per Second (Mbps).
The design language behind the venue is high-tech, utilizing the immersive nature of a three-times football field screen and thousands of high-quality speakers. And that is just on the interior.
High-tech speakers take the immersive venue to another level. About 164,000 speakers use an acoustic system to spread ultra-directional sound throughout the venue. By using beamforming technology, it makes it so that every guest feels like they are in the midst of the action.
On top of the speaker, MSG Sphere includes an infrasound haptic system on 10,000 seats that enhances the interactive experience.
You can literally feel what is going on around you through vibrations and force directly on your seats. Bass sounds will be transmitted through the floor, giving the audience a feel of the action beneath their feet.
The layout of the interior is an atrium/auditorium style with four floors facing the screen. Every seat on the floor is strategically placed to offer unobstructed views of the main event. Some floors can be accessed with escalators and bridges, which also connect to the 5.7 million cubic feet upscale entry into the main atrium.
How Much Does the Msg Sphere Cost?
It cost $2.3 billion in total to build the Sphere.
The starting budget was increased by more than $330 million in the four years since its conception.
Subsequent changes and delays shot the price up several times. From $1.2 billion in 2019 to $1.8 billion in 2021, to a whopping $2.3 billion upon completion.
Most of the cost increases were due to the Corona Pandemic that started affecting the project in April 2020. The price also went up because of the Sphere’s sheer complexity and the impact of inflation.
Despite the speculation of the Sphere being a money-pit, MSG is projected to create about $730 million in annual revenue from tourism and daily visitations. $48 million is expected to be its yearly tax revenue, and the Clark County School District will get about $7.2 million as a result.
When Did the MSG Sphere Open?
Sphere Las Vegas opened on September 29, 2023. The launch event was headlined by the band U2 who performed their UV Achtung Baby Live.
The second-highest-grossing-touring band after the Rolling Stones christened the Sphere stage, making it the first show ever in the MSG Sphere, a momentous occasion that will forever go down in history.
MSG Sphere Las Vegas Events: Concerts, Shows, & More
Concerts and award shows are set to be the primary acts at the MSG Sphere. Other events that will eventually grace the stage range from boxing matches to wrestling, mixed martial arts, product launches, movies, and corporate events.
From October 6th 2023, the Sphere hosted Postcard from Earth, its first film experience that tells a multi-sensory story designed by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, Darren Aronofsky.
The two-hour film introduces you to the full experience of the Sphere, taking advantage of the massive interior display to tell a deep and intimate sci-fi story. Its specifically designed for the Sphere, offering seat haptics, intense lighting, engulfing visual effects, simulations, and motion sensations.
The current events line-up at the Sphere consists of the following events:
- The Sphere Experience: Including Postcard from Earth & Other interactive experiences – Buy Tickets
- U2: UV Achtung Baby Live at MSG Sphere (September 29, 2023 – February 2024) – Buy Tickets
Update October 2023:
The Sphere Experience now has a real-life humanoid robot, Aura. Aura is a futuristic, albeit still new, robot modeled with a feminine voice, a silver exterior, and human-like movement.
She resides at the grand atrium of the Sphere and serves as an interactive tour guide to the futuristic venue. She can offer a history of science and art but you can also converse with her by asking any questions. Here is a video of guests interacting with Aura.
Sphere Las Vegas has also added a few more attractions including: a 360-degree avatar capture and holographic image displays.
MSG Sphere Las Vegas Tickets
Tickets for events are available for purchase on the Sphere’s website. Currently, MSG Sphere Las Vegas cost starts at $49 per ticket.
MSG Sphere Parking
Parking at the MSG Sphere is limited, with current space projecting about 304 public spaces on the premises. For a capacity of 18,600 seated guests, 304 parking space is less than ideal and the Sphere only allocates those spaces to VIPs.
However, the management is planning on offsetting the difference by using 12,101 parking spaces at the Venetian Expo. This still needs to meet the venue’s required space, but the Venetian and Palazzo resorts close by will significantly provide more parking.
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Summing Up
Considering what an attractive sight the MSG Sphere is, you may be wondering from where you can catch the lighting show from outside. Great locations to view this free Vegas show include close by Strip resorts like the Venetian and Palazzo.
All in all, the MSG Sphere Las Vegas is a state-of-the-art entertainment venue that is set to revolutionize the way we experience live events. The Sphere’s immersive technology and unique design make it a must-visit destination for people from all over the world.
Please give me a DATE when the MSG Sphere will open so I can plana vacation !!!!!!!!
From the official Sphere Web site. The first available show is Oct 6, 2023.