Kroenke Sports & Entertainment will welcome up to 3,500 Avalanche and Nuggets fans to watch each of the teams’ home playoff games outside Ball Arena. The new fan zone and viewing area will be known as Avs Alley for Avalanche games, with Key Bank serving as the presenting sponsor, and Base Camp 5280 Fan Zone for Nuggets games, with UMB and Ibotta serving as presenting sponsors.
The stretch of Chopper Circle between 9th Street and 11th Street, which will be closed to vehicle traffic, will feature live game broadcasts on a 20-foot video board, along with DJs, food trucks, beer and hard seltzer carts, giveaways, partner activations and appearances by team mascots and dance teams. General admission to the viewing area will be free for the first two rounds of the playoffs, but digital passes will be required for entry. If either team advances to the conference finals, an admission fee will be instituted, with all proceeds benefitting Kroenke Sports Charities.
“The point of Avs Alley is to not only elevate the experience of people coming to the game but also give other fans a low-cost place to gather and celebrate the team,” Avalanche Senior Dir/Marketing Megan Boyle said.
Outdoor fan zones have become popular across the NHL and NBA during the playoffs in recent years as an opportunity to engage fans who aren’t able to secure tickets while driving additional revenue through sponsorship and the sale of concessions and merchandise. Prior to 2018, the NHL limited the number of watch parties that teams could hold to protect its broadcast partners, but it has since embraced the concept fully.
