ING Arena, arena in Brussels Expo, Heysel, Brussels, Belgium
ING Arena is a large indoor multipurpose venue in Brussels, built to host concerts, sports events, and theater productions under one roof. The hall features a modular floor area and tiered seating sections that can be reconfigured depending on the type of event.
Construction of the twelfth hall of the Brussels Expo complex began in May 1988 with the laying of its first stone, and it opened in 1989, fully booked for its first 150 days. After a year of works, it reopened on 13 September 2013 following a 21-million-euro renovation funded by the City of Brussels, with a free concert by The Australian Pink Floyd. It was renamed ING Arena in September 2023.
The arena's name comes from its original role as the twelfth hall of the Brussels Expo complex, and since September 2023 it has carried the name ING Arena under a sponsorship deal with the bank ING. The Music Industry Awards have been presented here annually since 2017, and the venue hosted the final of Eurosong 2023, Belgium's preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest.
The arena sits in the north of Brussels and is well served by metro and bus lines, which is the easiest way to arrive for most visitors. Those coming by car should be aware that parking around the venue fills up fast on event nights.
Despite its size, the building has a relatively low profile from the outside and is easy to miss if you are not looking for it. Inside, the layout is designed so that sightlines are good from nearly every seat, which is not always the case in arenas of this scale.
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