The Dôme de Paris - Palais des Sports

In the 15th arrondissement of Paris, Porte de Versailles comes alive every evening to the sound of performances at the Dôme de Paris. Since it opened in 1960, nearly fifty million spectators have flocked here. Intimate concerts, musicals, one-man shows… This stage, which has left its mark on music history, remains one of Paris Region’s must-see cultural venues today.

From palace to dome

Where a dark chapter of history once unfolded, a monument dedicated to the performing arts was built. On the ruins of the Vélodrome d’Hiver, the Palais des Sports de Paris was constructed in 1960. An architectural feat for its time: its dome, made up of 1,100 aluminium panels weighing just 200 tonnes, became one of the lightest self-supporting structures in the world.

Renovation works in 1975 and 2002 helped expand and modernise the Palais des Sports. Its name also had a makeover: in 2015, it was simply renamed the Dôme de Paris. To this day, the monument is appreciated by audiences and sought after by artists for the quality of its sound, its human scale and the excellent visibility offered by its arena-shaped hall.

Boxing gloves and leather jackets

Between the Stade de France, the Accor Arena and Paris La Défense Arena, the City of Light can pride itself on being a world capital of live entertainment. But among these giants, the Dôme de Paris stands out as a legendary stage. The venue first became one of the greatest meeting places for thrilling boxing bouts, with its “boxing Mondays” that caused a sensation throughout Paris.
Beyond these sporting contests, another legend cut his teeth on the stage of the Dôme de Paris: a certain Johnny. At just 18 years old, he marked the beginning of a rock’n’roll era and made the venue one of the greatest gathering places for leather-jacketed rebels, right up until the 1980s.

But the idol of youth was not the only one to tread the Dôme’s boards. The Beatles, Queen and the Rolling Stones stirred up the crowds here. Louis Armstrong and Ray Charles performed some of the greatest blues and jazz classics. In 1966, Parisians even came here to meet Martin Luther King for a conference… A legendary venue.

Continue your musical escape just a stone’s throw from the Dôme de Paris, at Parc Georges Brassens.
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