Coca-Cola billboard

{{Short description|Advertising billboard in Sydney}} {{about|the billboard in Sydney, Australia|the billboard in [[Times Square]], New York City|Coca-Cola sign}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}} {{Use Australian English|date=July 2013}} [[File:Coca Cola Billboard.jpg|thumbnail|right|The Coca-Cola billboard was first installed in 1974 and in 2015 the original neon sign was removed. In 2016 the new sign was turned on and it uses a lot less power by making use of LED tubing.<ref name="sign Potts Point">{{Cite web|url=https://archives.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/nodes/view/1970745|title=Coca-Cola Sign|website=City of Sydney|access-date=26 March 2026}}</ref> Photo taken in 2007.]]

The '''Coca-Cola Billboard''' in [[Kings Cross, New South Wales|Kings Cross]], [[Sydney]], is an advertising [[billboard]] erected in 1974 by [[Coca-Cola Amatil|Coca-Cola]].<ref name="sign Potts Point"/> It is more often regarded as an iconic landmark than as an advertisement and is considered to be the premier billboard in Sydney and is the second largest billboard in the [[Southern Hemisphere]] next to the Glebe Island silos billboard.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/it-was-a-billboard-made-for-the-sydney-olympics-twenty-two-years-later-it-s-still-there-20220926-p5bkzq.html|title=It was a billboard made for the Sydney Olympics. Twenty-two years later, it’s still there|date=26 September 2026|work=SMH|access-date=26 March 2026}}</ref>

The Coca-Cola sign is located above the intersection of [[William Street, Sydney|William Street]] and Darlinghurst Road and is attached to the Zenith Residences, formerly the Millenium Hotel and Kingsgate Hotel. The sign is often referred to as ''The Gateway to the Cross'', because it is prominently visible from all of William Street, which is the principal road leading to Kings Cross from the [[Sydney central business district|Sydney CBD]]. One also must pass directly in front of the sign when entering Kings Cross from either William Street or Darlinghurst Road, the two main access roads. The sign is often thought to be heritage listed which it is not.<ref name="sign Potts Point"/>

The billboard is made up of two parts: on the right, the famous red and white neon sign, and on the left the more modern, flex-faced sign.<ref name="sign Potts Point"/> In total the sign is 41 metres in length and 13 metres in height, with the right sign being slightly larger at 21 metres in length. The red and white neon sign is made up of eighty-eight vertical bars of red tubing. It also has 800 fluorescent lamps that are concealed behind reflectors that allow the billboard to project thirteen different patterns. The left part of the billboard is a flex-face style sign and is internally illuminated by approximately 1,000 fluorescent lamps.

==History== [[File:Activists unfurling banner over Kings Cross billboard.jpg|thumb|right|In 2008 activists covered the billboard in protest of Chinese policies towards Tibet]] The red and white neon billboard was erected in 1974<ref name="sign Potts Point"/><ref>{{cite web | author=Coca-Cola| title=The History and Future of the Kings Cross Coca-Cola Sign | year=2016 | url=http://www.coca-colajourney.com.au/stories/times-they-are-a-changing-the-history-and-future-of-the-kings-cross-coca-cola-sign | work = coca-colajourney.com.au}}</ref> in its current location whilst the left side of the billboard was a later addition in 1990. In 2004 the billboard for the first time in thirty years advertised a product other than Coca-Cola, when the left side of the board advertised the release of ''[[Halo 2]]''.<ref>{{cite web | author=Ryan Shaw| title=Halo 2 | year=2005 | publisher=Australian PC World| url=http://moreresults.factiva.com/results/index/index.aspx?ref=ASPC000020050119e1210001t | work = factiva.com}}</ref>

On 31 March 2007 the lights on the billboard were intentionally switched off for the first time, in correlation with the inaugural [[Earth Hour]].<ref>{{cite web | author=Terry Smith| title=Emerald city blacks out for brighter future | work=[[Sydney Morning Herald]] | date=2007-03-31|accessdate=2007-05-01 | url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/emerald-city-blacks-out/2007/03/31/1174761820887.html }}</ref>

On 23 April 2008, four activists unfurled a banner over the billboard in protest of Coke's sponsorship of the Olympic torch relay at Kings Cross. The banner read: "Enjoy Compassion. Always Tibet. CHINA – TALK TO THE DALAI LAMA". All four activists were arrested.<ref>{{cite news|title=Activists cover Cross sign|first=Arjun|last=Ramachandran|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=2008-04-23|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/activists-cover-cross-sign/2008/04/23/1208743017340.html}}</ref>

In 2015, the original sign was removed to make way for an upgraded sign that is made up of LED tubing that uses a lot less power and the new Coca-Cola sign was officially turned on, on the 15 September 2016.<ref name="sign Potts Point"/><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.cnet.com/culture/australias-iconic-coca-cola-billboard-auctioned-off-letter-by-letter/|title=Australia's iconic Coca-Cola billboard auctioned off letter by letter|date=6 September 2016|work=Cnet|access-date=27 March 2026}}</ref> The lettering was auctioned off, raising $100,700 for the [[Wayside Chapel]],<ref>{{cite web | author=Coca-Cola| title=Coca-Cola has Auctioned off the Original Kings Cross Sign Letters for Charity | year=2016 | url=http://www.coca-colajourney.com.au/stories/a-little-piece-of-history-why-coca-cola-is-auctioning-off-the-original-kings-cross-sign-letters | work = coca-colajourney.com.au}}</ref> but the hyphen between the words was given away via a [[Facebook]] contest, and now resides in [[Lithgow, New South Wales|Lithgow]], as part of a Christmas light display.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lithgowlights.com/2016.html |title=LithgowLights – 2015 Display July to November |website=lithgowlights.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160212053134/http://lithgowlights.com/2016.html |archive-date=2016-02-12}}</ref> It is the single largest controllable LED sign in the Southern Hemisphere and can change colour.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/new-coke-sign-to-be-switched-on-in-sydney/news-story/5f3904e10f0a1ee6e17aeb6a34c4ac3f |title=New Coke sign to be switched on in Sydney |publisher=[[News.com.au]]|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915171524/http://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/new-coke-sign-to-be-switched-on-in-sydney/news-story/5f3904e10f0a1ee6e17aeb6a34c4ac3f |archive-date=2016-09-15}}</ref> In 2025 the sign was refreshed.<ref>[https://mumbrella.com.au/kings-cross-coke-sign-gets-a-new-look-for-coca-cola-campaign-910150 Kings Cross Coke sign gets a new look] ''[[Mumbrella]]'' 11 December 2025</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

[[Category:Billboards]] [[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1974]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Sydney]] [[Category:Coca-Cola buildings and structures|Billboard]] [[Category:Individual signs in Australia]] [[Category:Kings Cross, New South Wales]] [[Category:1974 establishments in Australia]]