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Molson Amphitheatre to be renamed Budweiser Stage

The Molson Canadian Amphitheatre is getting a new name – and corporate sponsor.

Effective immediately, the Ontario Place concert venue will be known as the Budweiser Stage.

The renaming is part of a multi-year partnership between Labatt Breweries of Canada and promoter Live Nation Canada, the open-air venue’s owner.

The Amphitheatre has been a staple of summer concert going in the city for 21 years. Last year, the 16,000-capacity venue hosted close to 40 concerts, including Dolly Parton, Florence & The Machine, Journey, Kelly Clarkson, Smashing Pumpkins and Weezer. The venue was also the site of Drake’s OVO Festival for six years before the hip-hop event moved to the Air Canada Centre last summer.

In addition to giving beer brand Budweiser a presence at Live Nation’s 1,200 events across the country, the sponsorship is being used to revitalize the venue to make getting in and out  easier.

To do that, Live Nation and Bud are adding more concession stands, expanding cash-less payment options (such as mobile apps and tap-enable payment cards), adding more concession options and launching initiatives to encourage fans to arrive early and stay later.

“If people are coming in early and staying a little longer after the show, we’re expecting that to stagger entrance and exits to make the whole experience smoother,” says John May, Live Nation Canada’s president of media and corporate partnerships.

The pre-show offering will include a “Bud and Burgers” combo program as well as after parties and local musical acts performing along the River Walk area along the front of the building.

Of course, the selection of beers on offer will shift to those owned by Labatt parent Anheuser-Busch In Bev SA, which include Budweiser, Stella Artois, Corona, Bud Light, Goose Island, Brickworks Cider and Prohibition Brew.

Molson’s deal expired at the end of 2016. The company expressed “some interest” in extending, but May says, “their interest primarily lies in other areas whereas Budweiser Canada has made a national commitment to the music business.”

He declined to comment on the terms of the deal, including the length of Budweiser’s contract.

Budweiser began aggressively aligning itself with music in 2010. It is the lead sponsor for Jay Z’s annual Made In America festival and EDM festival Tomorrowland. It is also involved with Toronto’s NXNE and the Calgary Stampede.

No other upgrades to the building have been announced and the partnership is not part of the wider revitalization of Ontario Place.

“We’re constantly looking at capital investment, which will continue,” says May. “We don’t have the specifics of what those investments are going to be for 2017.”

The new signage will go up in time for the start of the summer season. So far the only concert announced for this year is Chicago and The Doobie Brothers on July 19.

The Molson Amphitheatre opened in 1995 and replaced the Forum, which opened with Ontario Place in 1971. In 2012, Live Nation launched the adjacent, general admission venue Echo Beach, which has a capacity of 5,000.

kevinr@nowtoronto.com | @kevinritchie

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