EUROPE'S largest indoor entertainment venue, the MEN Arena, has been sold in a deal worth over £49 million.

The new owner is the Anschutz Entertainment Group, which also owns the Millennium Dome in London.

The deal is the US entertainment company's second largest investment in the UK, alongside the re-development of the Dome.

The Arena, which occupies an eight acre site, includes the 20,000 seat arena, car park, retail and restaurant space and two office buildings totalling around 11,175 sq m (120,299 sq ft), with a subsidiary of Manchester home shopping firm N Brown occupying the largest space.

In an ironic twist, Anschutz will now become the landlord of one of its largest rivals, SMG, a joint venture between Hyatt Hotels and New York-listed Aramark, who have a long term contract to operate the venue until 2015.

Colin Thomasson, director within DTZ's Manchester based investment agency team, said: "The MEN Arena is the most successful indoor entertainment venue in the world, and as a consequence its sale attracted a fantastic amount of interest from investors globally.

"This deal emphasises Manchester's growing attraction to international investors and this is a trend we expect to continue."

DTZ Manchester has been involved in the Arena project for five years and provided combined advice on its lettings, property management, professional services and building consultancy.

Anschutz has retained DTZ as managing agents and development consultants.

Costing £56 million to construct, the Arena received £35.5 million, the largest ever city grant, from Government. The remainder of the funding came from private investment, with a further £2.5 million donated by The European Economic Development Fund. Construction work began at the site on Christmas Eve 1992. The 'keys' were handed over to the original facility managers, Ogden Entertainment, on 4th July 1995.

The arena officially opened on15th July 1995 and hosted major concerts and entertainment events. The arena was also home to the Manchester Storm ice hockey team, and still holds the European ice hockey attendance record of 17,245, for a Storm game against Sheffield.

Anschutz was founded in 1958 by Philip Anschutz. The Denver billionaire also owns 78 per cent of Regal Entertainment Group, which in turn controls United Artists Theatre Company. The company also bought The San Francisco Examiner newspaper from the Hearst Corporation last February for $20 million. Other holdings include the Los Angeles' Staples Center, home to the Los Angeles Kings ice hockey team. Anschutz made his first fortune from oil on his Wyoming ranch.