Coventry Building Society Arena appoints managing director

Coventry Building Society (CBS) Arena has appointed Paul Michael as its new managing director.

Michael joined the multi-purpose venue in 2016, when he became the general manager of the newly-opened Doubletree by Hilton hotel at the arena. He has held the role of commercial director at the venue since 2019.

He began his career as an operations manager for Holiday Inn at Birmingham Airport, before becoming operations manager of Hilton Hotels’ Warwick location.

His first role as a general manager was at Hilton Basingstoke, before joining Hilton Nottingham in 2011 and becoming chairman of the Nottingham Hoteliers Association.

He is currently chairman of the oversight board for destination management organisation Destination Coventry, and is also a director for the Association of Event Venues.

Michael’s promotion is the second key appointment made by the venue in recent months, after Gary Hoffman was appointed as a non-executive chairman of Coventry Building Society Arena.

Michael said: “I’m proud to be moving into the role of managing director to continue to drive the venue forward.

“We have a superb team here at Coventry Building Society Arena, and with significant investment being made in the venue, means we are well-positioned to establish our name as a world-class destination for business, entertainment and sport.’

The 32,609-capacity venue was acquired by Frasers Group in 2022 for £17m.