The Charlotte Bobcats named Martin J. Bechtold Senior Vice President/Event Booking and Marketing for the new Charlotte Arena on July 6. The Bobcats will operate the City of Charlotte’s New Charlotte Arena.

“Marty Bechtold is a great addition to our organization and we look forward to having him book and promote all of the events at our new arena,” said Barry Silberman, Executive Vice President of Arena Development, Operations and Entertainment. “There will be a great variety of shows, concerts and events at the arena and his experiences in the industry will ensure that the Charlotte community will enjoy the very best in entertainment.”

Bechtold will be responsible for securing, managing and promoting events at the new arena, which is currently under construction and set to open in November of 2005. In his new position, Bechtold will manage business relationships with event promoters and booking agencies and oversee the marketing, public relations and promotional efforts surrounding the non-Bobcats and non-Sting events at the new arena.

“When Barry Silberman, for whom I had previously worked, described the state-of-the art arena to me, I was tremendously impressed,” Bechtold related. “I am confident that there will be great interest in bringing events to this fabulous facility in Uptown. I am looking forward to working with Barry again and I am eager to promote this building and market to the event community.”

Bechtold comes to the Bobcats after serving as Regional Vice President – College Division for SMG where he directly managed accounts in all areas of operations, including event booking, human resources, finance, risk management, client relations and development and design services. Included in his duties was responsibility of The Amphitheatre at Regency Park in Cary, North Carolina, which was nominated in December of 2003 for the Pollstar Red Rocks Award for Best Small Amphitheater in the country.

Prior to his promotion to Regional Vice President, Bechtold was the Executive Director of SMG Sports and Entertainment. In that role, he was the liaison between artist management and agents and the Sports and Entertainment Division for over 150 properties that featured NBA exhibition games, Professional Bull Riders events, United States Tennis Association (USTA) events including the Davis Cup and Fed Cup and various musical and family shows.

Bechtold’s professional career includes stints as General Manager of the Cleveland State University Convocation Center, where he worked for Silberman, Managing Director of Development for Centre Management, Associate Director of the University of Illinois at Chicago Pavilion, Events and Promotions Coordinator for Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and Events Coordinator at the Rosemont Horizon in suburban Chicago.

After completing his undergraduate work at Washington & Lee, Bechtold went on to receive his Masters degree in Sports Administration and Facility Management from Ohio University.

The Charlotte Bobcats are the NBA’s 30th franchise and tip-off their inaugural season in 2004-05 at the Charlotte Coliseum before moving to the New Charlotte Arena beginning with the 2005-06 NBA season.

The New Charlotte Arena opens in November 2005 and will be home to the NBA’s Charlotte Bobcats and the WNBA’s Charlotte Sting. The state-of-the-art facility is located in the heart of Charlotte, N.C., with more than 4,000 hotel rooms within walking distance. The arena, which will have seating configurations for audiences ranging from 4,000 to 18,500, will feature restaurants, retail and a range of visitor-friendly amenities. It is adjacent to the city’s planned light rail corridor and is just a few miles from Interstates 77 and 85. For booking information contact Marty Bechtold of the New Charlotte Arena at (704) 329-4909 or mbechtold@bobcatsbasketball.com.