Sixers strike new stadium deal
Last month, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, owner of the Philadelphia 76ers, and Comcast Spectacor, owner of the Philadelphia Flyers, announced a joint venture to build a new arena in South Philadelphia. In doing so, the Sixers abandoned their plan to build an 18,500-seat arena in Chinatown with a main entrance on Market Street. The Sixers $1.3 billion project was approved by city council in December of 2024 after multiple years of vocally seeking other options than the Wells Fargo Center.
Going forward, Comcast will have a minority stake in the Sixers organization and will help partner with HBSE to attempt to attract a WNBA team to the city with the enticing promise of a new state-of-the-art arena for all three franchises to play in. The new deal between Comcast and Harris ensures all four of the major franchises in Philadelphia will remain on Broad Street for years to come.
“From the start, we envisioned a project that would be transformative for our city and deliver the type of experience our fans deserve. By coming together with Brian and Comcast, this partnership ensures Philadelphia will have two developments instead of one, creating more jobs and real, sustainable economic opportunity,” stated HBSE’s Josh Harris, David Blitzer, and David Adelman.
The arena situation between Comcast and Harris had become tense over the past few years in South Philadelphia. Comcast and the Flyers previously did not share ownership of the Wells Fargo Center with the Sixers or HBSE. This forced the Sixers into an unfavorable arena situation, remaining loyal to their home in the Broad Street Sports Complex despite having to pay rent to Comcast.
So, the Sixers eventually announced their intention to let their lease at the Wells Fargo Center expire for the 2031-2032 NBA season. The team received the necessary approval from city officials, despite adamant protests from civilians, for the construction of the arena in December, just weeks before the new deal with Comcast was announced in January.
“This new agreement between the 76ers and Comcast is a significant win for the 76ers, Comcast, our members and the entire City of Philadelphia. The Stadium District in South Philadelphia will be dramatically enhanced and expanded, providing the 76ers with the new state-of-the-art arena the team needs and deserves,” IBEW LOCAL 98 said in a statement. “Comcast has also pledged to commit the financial resources needed to revive the dormant Market East corridor, which is critically important to the entire city. For IBEW Local 98 and the Trades, a $1.3 billion project just turned into a multi-billion development that will create a stunning new stadium district that will keep our members working for decades.”
This agreement plans to demolish the Wells Fargo Center to make space for the new arena, despite spending hundreds of millions in internal and external renovations on the arena that finished in 2022. It also comes after multiple years of the Sixers ownership group lobbying for the city council to approve their departure from the Wells Fargo Center into Chinatown.
“We knew this deal was bad from the beginning. Anybody following the issue closely could clearly see this was a power struggle between billionaires and corporations,” quoted City Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Nicolas O’Rourke in a joint statement.
The new agreement solves the problem of the Sixers vacancy in South Philadelphia, it also plans to revitalize both the sports complex and the Market East area despite the abandonment of the Market East arena and leaving many feeling as if the Sixers had used the city council’s valuable time to leverage themselves into a more favorable position at the bargaining table with Comcast.
TJ Corcoran
DiSportsPhotoAgency
Writer
