Although the European live entertainment business as a whole continues to build back up to pre-pandemic levels, Philipp Musshafen, who leads the 15,500-capacity Hallenstadion in the Swiss capital of Zurich, is quick to admit there are hurdles to overcome.

“2024 was a very successful year for many arenas in Europe,” said Musshafen, CEO of the public entity that operates the arena, which dates to 1939. “For Switzerland, capacity utilization was rather average. 2025 looks all the better, as we have already been able to announce a large number of events and will be adding a few more.”

The arena had a busy calendar and reported strong numbers for many concert dates, however, including tour stops by Travis Scott, Karol G, Jonas Brothers and family shows including Disney On Ice and Monster Jam.

“One of the major challenges was and still is to be able to absorb the ever-increasing costs in our business,” said Musshafen. “We are looking for ways to optimize processes so that we don’t have to pass everything on to ticket prices. Apart from that, there are some smaller and larger challenges that we have to face, for example, our heritage protection on the building, which slows us down in certain sustainability projects. We do this together with a fantastic team and close collaboration with our partners, the promoters.”

Musshafen says he feels strongly that rising costs and high ticket prices lead to barriers to entry for average folks, and that efforts to offset prices through public funding and subsidies are often aimed at fine arts rather than rock concerts.

“It must not continue to be the case that only ‘high culture’ benefits from funding and subsidies,” he said. “The added value of a concert, the added value of popular culture, is many times higher. Politicians must finally recognize that not only sport and ‘high culture’ should be supported. The importance of live events is immense for the well-being of the population and also generates huge added value in the region.”

Still, Hallenstadion looks to continue as one of the most revered arenas in western Europe, emphasizing customer service and modernization.

“Our visitors have recently been given a completely digital signage, which opens up a wide range of new possibilities,” he said. “Not only can we be completely flexible, we can also integrate branding into the signage for our partners and corporate customers. We have also just started to create a new concept for our VIP area. We want to offer our customers flexible packages with a wide range of experiences, from valet parking to after-show parties.”
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