AEG Live, the live-entertainment division of Los Angeles-based entertainment and sports giant AEG, announced Tuesday that it has launched AEG Live Events, a special event arm. AEG Live Events has offices in Los Angeles and St. Louis and plans to extend its sales presence in additional U.S. markets.

“With AEG Live’s rapid ascent to becoming the No. 2 live entertainment promotion company in the world, we saw a tremendous need for a full-service company to create and produce special events of all sizes for our organization and existing clients as well as other artists and companies looking to promote themselves in unique and spectacular ways,” said Timothy J. Leiweke, AEG president and CEO. AEG Live Events personnel include event veterans Craig Leitner, who serves as director of events, and Michael Boltzman, who serves as director of business development. The team’s experience includes organizing the 1999 visit of Pope John Paul II to St. Louis and producing the Gala Award-winning Super Bowl 2002 halftime show.

AEG owns and controls facilities including the Staples Center, the Home Depot Center, and the Forum in Los Angeles, operates the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, and owns or holds a management share in sports franchises including the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team and the Los Angeles Kings hockey team. AEG is now overseeing development of L.A. Live, a proposed 4 million square foot development including a 1,200-room convention hotel, theater and residential/office space concept adjacent to Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles.