Leveling the Playing Field

Example of freelance work I completed for Unique Venues, a marketing agency for event planners and venues, in 2020

Sports venues have the unenviable task of hosting tens of thousands of fans for just a portion of the year. Football stadiums usually host less than ten games a year, basketball arenas may host 20 to 40 games depending on the level of play, and baseball parks 80 to 100 games if they make the playoffs.

What happens the rest of the year? Team owners don’t want their properties sitting dormant during the down time, and also recognize opportunities to increase profits and exposure of the venue and their team. Unique Venues is going coast-to-coast to look at Oracle Park (San Francisco, California), MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, New Jersey) and the College Football Hall of Fame (Atlanta, Georgia)

Oracle Park, home of the San Francisco Giants (MLB)

Oracle Park is owned and operated by Giants Enterprises Group, launched in 1999, the year before the Giants moved into Oracle Park (then AT&T Park) from Candlestick Park, a city-owned facility. Giants Enterprises was created to explore opportunities to take advantage of having a privately owned property that also is on the waterfront. 

Oracle secured the naming rights for the park last year. The name change was announced on January 10, 2019, and Oracle hopes to host eight to ten corporate events at the park in 2020. The Giants’ previous home, Candlestick Park, was a two-sport venue for football and baseball, and the city didn’t have a business model to support extra events outside of a few concerts.

 “Giants Enterprises is set up as an LLC, so it isn’t subject to MLB revenue sharing,” shared Joey Nevin, Vice President of Giants Enterprises Group. “The profits goes back to the bottom line to helping the team and the venue.”

Nevin has witnessed a spike in programming and the variety of events, as well as clients relationships, since he began with Giants Enterprises in 2007. The Giants won three World Series in that time (2010, 2012 and 2014), so that has definitely helped to increase visibility. Local clients may be fans of the team, or just fans of the city, but they often work with clients who are not local and just looking for a property that will deliver a unique experience and meet the event needs. 

Nevin, past president of MPI, noted MPI did not have many sports venue members. Numbers are certainly increasing, especially since he joined the Giants. Giants Enterprises also works with San Franscisco’s CVB/DMO to promote larger events like large conventions, concerts and rugby matches. Being part of San Francisco’s tourism industry, Oracle Park tours are included as part of the experience while tourists visit the city, especially for international visitors.

Giants Enterprises features not just the baseball park and its multi-purpose spaces, but also two yachts, waterfront views and frontage on the bay. 

Oracle Park’s clients enjoy using the field as part of their event, including hosting softball games, batting practice, receptions on the diamond, concerts, cocktail events in the dugouts, and holiday parties on the field.

A recently installed videoboard is the largest screen in California as of January 2020, and gives clients the opportunity to customize it for their events, including social media messaging, award presentations, recognition, and a backdrop for speaking engagements. 

The purchase of two yachts expanded Oracle Park’s space to include waterfront events, and the creation of a maritime division to cater to the convention market. Meeting planners in San Francisco know that the waterfront is an option, and the use of the water frontage and the yachts is unique, even for many San Francisco venues. Various digital and media components are visible from the park and on the waterfront. 

The décor and the interiors in Oracle Park and its properties tie in the Giants theme in a subtle way, but doesn’t detract from the setting. For example, one event featured the Giants logo intertwined with nautical rope. For another event, clients used images of a former manager who was dressed up as a “skipper”. Nevin’s team uses subtle placement, such as using baseball themed equipment in décor, like a glass cylinder vase with baseballs. 

“Our guests walk into the main gates of the park, on the field, then have a cocktail reception at private club on the waterfront and walk to the yacht for the next event,” Nevin said. “Packing value in with the variety of venues that we can offer is key. Even if the waterfront features aren’t used, the backdrop of the waterfront, views of the bridge, bay, and the skyline is another offering that clients can take advantage of.”

In 2018, Giants Enterprises hosted 40 rugby teams during the Giants season for the Rugby World Cup. Transitioning the field from rugby to baseball involved giving the grounds crew shoulder dates to transition the field back to baseball playing conditions for the Giants homestand. Oracle Park also hosts soccer games, so they could turn rugby and soccer fans who attend games into Giants fans as well.

Giants sponsors and valued season ticket holders are given preferred treatment and flexibility in having events at Oracle Park. Non-sports events hosted last fall included a Spartan Race, a science festival for 20,000, a Dreamforce concert and eight or nine private events. In addition to the concert, the Dreamforce conference hosted a fundraiser for the local children’s hospital in the suite level, and the concert served as the backdrop for the fundraiser. Almost all events are corporate or convention-related. 

“We become a true asset for the city to host large scale events like the concerts and conventions such as Dreamforce,” noted Nevin. “Hosting non-sporting events help to drive the brand throughout the year.”

MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Giants (NFL), New York Jets (NFL), and New York Guardians (XFL)

As the only NFL stadium currently home to two teams, MetLife Stadium hosts 20 NFL games a year, and will add XFL games for the Guardians this year. The 2.1 million square foot facility opened in 2010 and cost $2.1 billion to build. MetLife Stadium Company, a joint venture between the NFL teams, owns the stadium, and privately financed the construction on land leased from the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority. MetLife obtained naming rights in 2011, soon after the stadium began operations. 

“We host events year round,” said Stephanie Manzo, Assistant Director of Special Events at MetLife Stadium. We have a fantastic operations and facilities team and are able to host an event and then flip the space overnight for an NFL game the next day!” 

In addition to corporate events, mitzvahs, and tradeshows, MetLife hosts Project Graduation, an all-night graduation party every spring. Graduating seniors from local New Jersey high schools arrive are invited to the stadium from 8pm to 5am the next morning. 

“The stadium is set up in experiential zones including a dance party with DJ, inflatable rides, rock climbing, zip lining, and a mentalist show,” explained Manzo. “We host over a dozen schools during a week-long period. Our special events team works with the school administrators and their parent clubs to ensure the seniors have a fun-filled and more importantly, safe evening. This program has been so successful that we are utilizing the same set-up during the day for our corporate clients to host team-building and employee outings.”

• The Football Field accommodates from 100 to 10,000 guests, and features a variety of digital display options on video boards around the stadium. Uses vary from receptions and speaking engagements to team building activities and family days for corporations. Many clients have their event in an indoor club space with an hour or two of field time for the added experience.
• Indoor club spaces range from 7,500 square feet (MetLife 50 Club) to 18,000 square feet (Coaches Club)
• Outdoor club spaces include the Commissioner’s Club (10,700 square feet) with its mahogany bars and two fireplaces lounges, the Toyota Club and United Rentals Club (each 30,000 square feet). They feature views of the field and are ideal for galas, meetings and tradeshows.
• Smaller spaces include the Blue Point Pub and Bow Street Irish Whiskey Bar 
• MetLife Stadium is unique in that it has four locker rooms; the Giants and Jets each have their own locker room, in addition to the two visitors’ locker rooms, which are available for events.

The club spaces can transition from corporate meetings to cocktail hours or dinners. Even the parking lots are available to rent, whether it’s an outdoor festival or a ride-and-drive test program for a major car company. Four massive (30 feet high x 118 feet wide) videoboards inside the stadium, and 20 digital pylons (40 to 60 feet high, and 20 feet wide) located on the exterior of the stadium allow clients to share videos with their guests.

Stadium tours are offered to guests as an add-on. Clients can also purchase a photo package that provides them with a photographer and access to the field and stadium seating bowl for 2 hours. The photo package has been popular as an add-on and a stand-alone package for bridal parties, engagement photos and mitzvahs.

“It’s fun for us to see the couples that come and take engagement photos or even the bridal parties that stop at the stadium between their ceremony and reception venue for photos,” said Manzo. “Whether it’s a photo shoot or hosting the actual event, we are so appreciative to be part of their special day.”

MetLife Stadium’s Special Events team engages local businesses and corporate clients through affiliations like the Meadowlands Chamber of Commerce. The team maintains a strong database of event planners and vendors with whom they have continued relationships. 

In addition to being Unique Venues clients, MetLife Stadium advertises in wedding and Bar/Bat Mitzvah circles to continue attracting social events to the stadium. Return business remains a large portion of business by maintaining partnerships with clients and planners. 

College Football Hall of Fame

The College Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF) moved from South Bend, Indiana to Atlanta to a newly constructed facility in 2014. The 95,000 square foot, 3-story facility, built for $68.5 million, includes interactive exhibitions, five galleries, and a 47-yard football field. In 2018, Chick-fil-A became the title sponsor, so it is officially known as the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame.

“It wasn’t even supposed to be an events venue, but people ask to host their events here after seeing the spaces,” said Elise Rankins, Event Manager at College Football Hall of Fame. “Being an events venue has brought a lot of exposure to the College Football Hall of Fame and to downtown Atlanta.

The Hall of Fame hosts a number of annual events related to sports, including events for the National Football Foundation, ESPN’s “The Home Depot College Football Awards, and the MacArthur presentation, when the national championship team receives their trophy after it is engraved at Tiffany’s in New York City. SEC Media Days now rotates between Birmingham, where the three-day pre-season media extravaganza has been held for decades, and the Hall of Fame in Atlanta.

This past fall, the Pro Football Hall of Fame (which is located in Canton, Ohio) even hosted an event for children. The Hall of Famers spoke to youth football teams, and hosted a fundraiser and silent auction. The event was held the same weekend as the University of Georgia-Notre Dame game in nearby Athens, so this event was one of many activities in Atlanta related to the high-profile college football game.

During the week of Super Bowl LIII, which Atlanta hosted in 2019, CFHOF hosted 13 events in five days, including events for Sports Illustrated and Fanatics. This year, as Atlanta hosts the NCAA Final Four, they plan to host parties for alumni groups and conference affiliated groups. 

Atlanta hosts the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and the SEC Championship football game every year. For the bowl game, the Hall of Fame hosts team dinners, celebration dinners, dinners for the equipment staff, and the Dodd Trophy dinner (for Coach of the Year). For the SEC Championship, the Hall of Fame hosts parties for the SEC Network & ESPN.

CFHOF hosts related events for conferences which take place at the nearby Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC). GWCC and CFHOF share their event calendars to maximize space, and also because they utilize the same parking decks. A recent conference hosted by GWCC had a reception for 500 people at CFHOF, and they showed the AFC and NFC championship games on the big screens. 

Next door neighbor CNN holds their corporate meetings at the Hall of Fame. Last fall, on September 11, CFHOF closed for the day to allow Feed America as a place for volunteers to pack meals. 

The College Football Hall of Fame has flexible spaces that can be easily 

• The Rotunda houses the actual Hall of Fame blades for each member, and can seat 200. The space is glassed in, and overlooks Centennial Olympic Park.
• The Temporary Exhibit Space rotates every six months. When Atlanta hosted the Super Bowl in 2019, the exhibit was specific to the event. When the Hall of Fame class is inducted, the exhibit is specific for the induction.
• The Suad serves as the entryway for the venue, and doubles as event space with a spectacular 3 story wall of helmets from all 770 teams playing college football.
• The Theater seats 150 people, and has hosted film screenings and podcasts.
• The Playing Field, 45 yards long and 13,280 square feet in area, can be used for multiple purposes: receptions, meetings, and team building exercises using the skills zone.

The marketing department is the largest part of the team. Rankin handles private events, and works mainly with corporations to plan their events. Group sales brings in alumni groups, high schools for tours, and also may plan post-tour events. 

Rankins realizes that not everyone who attend events at the Hall of Fame are sports fans.

“They may be more connected to the sport than they realize. With the interactives, and hearing from celebrities and how they overcame challenges and obstacles means a lot.”

For example, in February, CFHOF had an exhibit for Black History Month, and guests that don’t follow sports may learn something from the exhibit. A guest may feel a connection because an athlete had to overcome the same obstacles they did, or they are from the same town. 

Location plays a large part in CFHOF’s success as an event venue. Its location in downtown Atlanta is near many other tourist attractions, as well as the city’s convention center and other sports venues like Mercedes-Benz Stadium (home to NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and MLS Atlanta United) and State Farm Arena (home to NBA’s Atlanta Hawks)

“Atlanta has become a vacation destination, and we are right next to the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke museum,” shared Rankin. “We are going into our sixth year in operation, and we are constantly making adjustments to create memorable experiences for our guests.”