One of the most exciting venues on the planet, the Las Vegas Sphere, took the world by storm when it first opened in 2023, is getting a sibling venue right here in the DMV area!
On Monday, January 19th, Governor Moore enthusiastically announced the plan in a joint statement alongside Prince George’s County executive, Aisha Braveboy, and some of the Sphere’s private backers, highlighting the economic benefits that the new Sphere venue would bring to the local economy.
What is the Sphere?
In case you’re unfamiliar, the Sphere is one of the most technologically advanced entertainment venues in the world, built by Sphere Entertainment in Las Vegas in 2023.
It quickly became a major attraction with its incredible visual displays, creating an immersive experience for spectators of whatever event the venue is hosting.
The exterior of the Sphere is covered in over a million LED lights to create what is ostensibly a 360-degree digital billboard, and on the interior is a 160,000-square-foot, fully rounded LED screen that wraps around the entire audience of over 18,500 people, creating a near 360-degree visual experience to compound whatever event is currently taking place at the venue, whether that be a concert, a sporting event, or something else entirely.
The new miniature version of the Sphere, planned for construction in National Harbor, Prince George’s County, Maryland, will be just a 15-minute drive from the District.
Although the scale of the new venue will be smaller, with an expected capacity of around 6,000 people, it will be just the second Sphere venue built in the United States and the third built in the world, making it a major attraction for tourism in the area!
When is it going to be built?
There has been no official timeline shared yet regarded start date for the project or when they hope to be operational, but that is expected to be determined in the near future as state and local politicians establish their budgets for the future and develop an agreed-upon funding plan for the project.
That being said, Governor Moore did state that the eventual construction effort will support around 2,500 jobs, and once operational, the new mini-Sphere should support around 4,750 jobs, eventually creating an expected annual economic impact of over $1 billion!
How much is the National Harbor Sphere going to cost?
No exact numbers have been shared regarding the budget for construction, but according to the governor’s office, the project will be funded publicly and privately, including roughly around $200 million in state, local, and private incentives.
The governor’s office also specifically stated that “negotiation and execution of definitive agreements continues.”