At roughly 100,000 square feet of usable event space, Amerant Bank Arena sits in Sunrise near Sawgrass Mills and dwarfs the meeting footprint of every hotel property in this market. That scale makes it relevant for general sessions, large sponsor activations, and entertainment-led corporate events, not for a standard breakout-heavy conference.
Booking an arena also means booking a production environment: rigging points, ice-floor conversion if the event runs during hockey season, and a labor structure suited to concerts and sporting events rather than standard hotel banquet staff.
Execution priorities
- Confirm the Florida Panthers' game calendar and any concert bookings against your proposed dates before assuming the arena is available.
- Plan for ice-floor conversion costs and timelines if the event needs a flat floor during hockey season.
- Budget for arena-scale rigging, production, and labor separately from a typical hotel AV package.
A production venue, not a meeting hotel
Arenas like this one are built for concerts, sports, and large-scale entertainment production first. A corporate event using the space benefits from professional-grade rigging, sound, and lighting infrastructure already in place, but it also means working within a venue calendar tied to the Florida Panthers' NHL season and touring concert schedules.
That calendar reality is the single biggest planning constraint: dates need to be checked against the team's home-game schedule and any announced concerts well before a corporate program can be confirmed.
Ice-floor conversion and floor logistics
During hockey season, the arena floor sits under ice, and converting it to a flat, usable floor for a general session or exhibit layout takes dedicated time and labor that a hotel ballroom never requires. Programs scheduling an event during this window need to build that conversion time into the load-in and strike schedule from the start.
Outside of hockey season, floor logistics are simpler, but the arena's production-first infrastructure still means labor calls, rigging permits, and technical staging follow entertainment-industry norms rather than standard hotel event procedures.
- Confirm whether your event dates fall during hockey season and require ice-floor conversion
- Ask about rigging point capacity and load limits for large sponsor activations
- Check labor call structures, since arena crews are typically sourced differently than hotel banquet staff
What kind of program fits here
The 100,000 square feet on record suits a large general session, a major product launch, or a sponsor-heavy activation that wants an entertainment-caliber production environment rather than a standard ballroom feel.
It is a poor fit for a program built for many small breakout sessions, since the arena's design favors one large central space over the kind of subdivided meeting rooms a hotel or convention center offers.
Sponsorship and naming-rights considerations
Arenas with active naming-rights sponsorships, as this one has, often carry existing branding agreements throughout the building, which can affect where a corporate event can place its own signage, activations, or sponsor logos without conflicting with the arena's own commercial partners.
Confirming those branding boundaries early, alongside the standard date and floor-conversion questions, helps avoid a late surprise about where a program's own sponsors can and cannot be visible inside the building.
Venue facts on record
The figures below come from official listing and destination sources and anchor any direct planning conversation with the venue's booking team.
- Amerant Bank Arena is an arena and event venue serving the Sunrise / Sawgrass corridor of Sunrise. Official source materials point to 100,000 square feet of meeting space. It is relevant for general sessions, entertainment-led events, sponsor activations, and large-capacity corporate gatherings in the greater Fort Lauderdale market.
Frequently asked questions
Why does hockey season matter for booking this venue?
The Florida Panthers' NHL schedule occupies much of the arena calendar, and during the season the floor sits under ice, requiring a conversion process for corporate events.
Is this venue good for a breakout-heavy conference?
Not really. The space favors one large central area rather than subdivided meeting rooms, so it fits general sessions and activations better than multi-track conferences.
How is arena labor different from hotel banquet labor?
Arena crews are typically sourced through entertainment-industry structures suited to concerts and sports, not standard hotel event staffing, so labor calls need separate confirmation.
What kind of program is the best fit for this arena?
Large general sessions, product launches, and sponsor-heavy activations that want a production-caliber environment rather than a standard meeting-room format.
Does this page claim a physical presence at the arena?
No. It is a planning reference built from public venue and destination data.
Can a corporate sponsor place its own branding inside the arena?
That depends on existing naming-rights and sponsorship agreements, so branding boundaries need direct confirmation with the venue before an event's sponsor signage is finalized.