The University of Texas announced on Thursday its Board of Regents had approved the construction of a new $338 million basketball arena to open in 2021. The arena is entirely privately funded already, which means it won’t come out of university money or from public funds, and, as one might expect, it’s going to be a state of the art facility.
It will be a 10,000 seat arena and one of the partners in the group reaching the agreement on the new arena with Texas is Matthew McConaughey — along with LiveNation, C3 Presents, and Oak View Group. McConaughey, of course, is one of the most famous alumnus of the University of Texas and is a regular presence at Longhorn sporting events.
However, his partnership with the new basketball arena goes beyond just being around, as he’ll play an integral part in the curation of the fan experience at the arena with his title of, I kid you not, Minister of Culture.
Austin-based Academy Award winner Matthew McConaughey will act as the “Minister of Culture” at the venue, ensuring that Longhorn and Austin cultures are front and center and helping create a fan experience unlike any other.
“It’s time to raise the bar. It’s time to excel, on the court and in the stands. It’s time for an authentic home court advantage for our Longhorn basketball teams. It’s time for a choice experience for our fans. It’s time to be a preferred venue for headliners from across the globe. It’s time for quality, success, and victories for the Longhorns and for Austin. It’s time for the big show. It’s time. Hook ’em,” said McConaughey, a 1993 UT Austin graduate.
I have no idea what exactly this means, but I’m excited to find out what Matthew McConaughey feels is important to the atmosphere of a basketball game.
