First look: Manchester is getting a spectacular new entertainment venue with music, sport, food, drink and more

Soon Manchester’s Etihad Campus, the home of Man City FC, won’t just be a place for fans of The Citizens to have a belter of a time. Later this year the area will welcome a vast, game-changing new £300 million entertainment complex.

Medlock Square, named after the River Medlock which runs beneath the site, will be sandwiched between the Etihad Stadium and the Co-op Live arena, which opened just under two years ago and hosted the BRIT Awards last week.

Expect market halls, coffee shops and casual dining spots by day, with fancier restaurants taking centre-stage once the sun begins to set. But Medlock Square is no typical eating, drinking and shopping emporium. Oh no. 

Medlock Square will have a covered space at its centre that is dedicated to the music and dance, with space for a whopping 3,000 people to shake a leg. There’s also a basketball arena, a swanky sky bar and a roof walk experience with abseiling and zipwires (not to mention gorgeous views of the city’s skyline). 

While Medlock Square is designed for both locals and tourists, being so close to the Etihad means that a fair bit of the programming will, of course, revolve around the footy. Promo materials for the new space hint at huge screenings of games so that fans without a ticket to the stadium next door can still enjoy the beautiful game from the comfort of a deck chair or beanbag. 

A new flagship City store is planned as part of the development, while fans can relive the magic of historic wins at an all-new immersive and interactive Museum Experience.

Redevelopment plans for the Etihad and its surrounding area have been in the works since April 2023. Expansion of the stadium’s north stand has already added 7,000 new seats, as well as a new bar and hospitality offering, while a 401-room hotel opened its doors on the site last month – with some views even overlooking the pitch.

Medlock Square’s official launch date hasn’t been announced yet, but we can expect the new entertainment hub to open its gates before the end of the year.

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