Industry News

Hey there, ALSD:

Never say never I suppose, but the current COVID-19 pandemic and its direct impact on our collective livelihood is likely the most complicated situation any of us will manage in our careers. In a moment where seemingly every variable is unknown to us, we are all fielding concerns from clients, from staff, from ourselves. It’s all very unsettling.

The Baltimore Ravens have announced a $24 million premium renovation to M&T Stadium – the final phase of a $120 million project.

While early phases focused on AV advancements, a field-level party suite, and stronger Wi-Fi, this final stage will feature an $8 million upgrade for 70 of the venue’s 133 suites, and a $15.8 million club level remodel.

In making the decision to renovate their 20-year-old State Farm Arena home instead of building new, the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks approached the $192.5 million project with the mantra that “renovation is innovation.”

The transformed arena (formerly Philips Arena), which began hosting games and live events in late October, demonstrates that the Hawks are one of the NBA’s most forward-looking organizations. It is now one of the best sports and live entertainment venues in the U.S.

The University of Texas has announced a $175 million renovation to Royal-Memorial Stadium’s south end zone. The project, designed by Populous, is set to begin in the summer of 2019 and be completed prior to the start of the 2021 football season.

While not making any changes to the seating capacity of the stadium, the renovation will include a field-level club modeled after AT&T Stadium, premium additions, a new video board, and other improvements. The premium addition will feature 94 loge boxes, 780 club seats, and four additional suites.

Elevate Sports Ventures joins the college athletics market through its newly formed Elevate on Campus, which will provide the University of Kentucky with ticket sales, services, and strategy for all events at Rupp Arena and Kroger Field. These events include all men’s basketball and football games, along with over 100 SEC events hosted by the university.

The Houston Texans have unveiled a full upgrade of NRG Park's premium portfolio, now rebranded as Houston Texans Luxe.

Several members of the local Houston media were recently invited to experience all of the venue's new premium amenities, including a team of local celebrity chefs and the BMW Postgame Experience, which provides fans with the opportunity to enjoy on-field postgame festivities.

The Los Angeles Rams have launched sales of premier and reserved seating for the NFL's new stadium in LA. Now estimated to be a $5 billion project, the venue, which will serve as the focal point for the new 298-acre entertainment district in Inglewood, edges towards completion for the 2020 season.

Vanderbilt University hints at future fundraising efforts to upgrade football facilities. Although the university is in the midst of a $600 million capital campaign, no athletic facilities are included on the project. Vanderbilt Stadium has gone without a renovation since 1981 while the rest of the SEC has experienced a venue renovation since 2006. As Vanderbilt contemplates a renovation, there are a number of comparable renovations around the country. TCU’s $100 million stadium renovation is scheduled for completion in 2019, including two levels of premium spaces.

This year’s U.S. Open tennis tournament showcased a whole new style of food court. Partnering with LDV Hospitality’s American Cut and chef Marc Forgione, U.S. Tennis Association named the area Champions by American Cut, to help celebrate the event’s 50th anniversary. Viewing the event as their fall kickoff, LDV Hospitality president John Meadow is excited to showcase American Cut as the signature steakhouse for the Open. Access to the space is guaranteed to premium ticket holders, while all remaining fans must purchase passes separately.

Boston Red Sox Triple-A affiliate agrees to pay $36 million toward the city of Worcester’s new $86 million venue. While the stadium will remain city owned, the team will receive all in-venue revenues. The venue is expected to host at least 133 events per year; eight by the city owned events and the remaining 125 by the team. Per documents released by the city, Madison Properties will provide the land for the stadium as the company looks to develop the district surrounding the venue into a commercial and real estate district.

Mississippi State is currently building a new $55 million dollar baseball stadium. There are new lounge areas and premium seating that have been completed, along with new entry plazas and a video board. The second stage of the project will be completed before the 2019 season. This stage will include finishing the entire upper deck of the grandstand including Diamond suites, and new bathrooms and concessions on the lower deck of the grandstand. Multiple rooms are being built below the grandstand, for example the team clubhouse and training rooms.

Currently, Texas has 3 different MLS stadium deals underway in the cities of Dallas, Houston, and Austin. Both Dallas and Houston have forked over money to build these stadiums, but Austin is in the process of creating a deal with Precourt that would have them financing the stadium, allowing the opportunity for the Columbus Crew to come down to Austin. Dallas is a sprawling area looking to get a lot of use out of their stadium, while Houston is a more under-utilized, high stress urban environment looking to revamp their atmosphere.

The New York Times reports that New York City’s first soccer stadium could rise next to Yankee Stadium. No deal has been reached, but the news is a change from earlier reports that the stadium would be part of a redevelopment in the Bronx. 

Regardless of its final location, the stadium planned $400 million, 26,000 seat stadium would be part of a much larger mixed-use development that would include housing, offices, a school, and shopping. 

The joint venture of Mortenson Construction and McCarthy Building Cos. is 15% done with construction on the $1.8 billion Las Vegas stadium, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. This will be the future home for the NFL's Oakland Raiders when the franchise moves for the 2020 season.

Team officials said excavating approximately 1 million cubic yards has been completed without any "surprises". The stadium's upper levels are due by the end of July, when crews are scheduled to start vertical construction with prefabricated steel.

When Mercedes-Benz Stadium announced its “Fan First” food and beverage pricing in the new Atlanta venue, many in the sports industry wondered if the model could be duplicated elsewhere.

Well, we’re going to find out during the 2018 NFL season.

The Baltimore Ravens are introducing a similar initiative, “Flock Friendly Fare”, at M&T Bank Stadium. Twenty-one menu items will be sold this upcoming season at 33% lower prices on average, including $3 hot dogs and $5 domestic beers.

New York Racing Association (NYRA) hopes to bolster non-gambling revenues at Saratoga Race Course by constructing a three-story luxury viewing facility near the finish line.

Racing operations have struggled in recent years, and the 36,000-square-foot premium seat area is expected to diversify revenue streams that currently rely heavily on electronic gambling – $2.55 billion was wagered at NYRA’s three tracks in 2017.

Maslow’s theory has been studied backwards and forwards in psychological circles and applied to numerous examples. Today, add one more to that list. Let’s overlay Maslow’s hierarchy of needs on top of the premium seating levels at the new Los Angeles Stadium at Hollywood Park, opening in 2020.

This stadium will feature three categories of premium seating: Club, VIP, and All-Access.

Virginia Tech is in the process of renovating its baseball field, English Park. The $18 million renovation has installed an updated entrance, grandstand, and press box tower, in addition to new premium seats. Also part of the project, pre-existing storage space has been transformed into a home locker room, team meeting room, and a trainer’s room.

Phase two of UD Arena’s $72 million renovation will continue, starting in May. The arena will become an active construction zone, open only to administration offices. The Donoher Center will remain open during the summer, as it was renovated during phase one completed last year.

In phase two, new club seats will be added between the 200 and 300 levels. Wider concourses will allow fans more room to move. Additionally, 3,200 seats in the 300 and 400 levels on the east side of the arena will be replaced and improved with plastic backs, padded seats, and cupholders.

For a long time, football fans around the globe knew North London as home of the “North London Derby” – a matchup considered one of the most intense in all of European football between Arsenal and the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.

Not too long ago, the chance to see your favorite band perform its hits live in concert or watch your favorite sports star play in person was well worth the price of admission. But not anymore.

During recent renovations, Lambeau Field redefined itself as a 365-day-a-year center for entertainment and business. The Packers are progressing that notion of redevelopment with Titletown. The two-phase, mixed-use project surrounding Lambeau Field will continue to bring visitors to the area, while investing in the community and ensuring Green Bay will flourish for years to come.

In this interview from the 2017 ALSD Conference and Tradeshow with Bryan Sperber, President of Phoenix Raceway, discover the reimagination of his venue, including its revamped infield with garage access and fan zone, renovated and new premium offerings, and reconfiguration of the start-finish line.

INTERVIEW EXCERPTS:

The San Jose Sharks have reached an agreement with the Franklin Group to become the team’s official promotional partner. The Franklin Group, a New York-based company with nationwide operations, provides integrated marketing solutions to a diverse group of industries and organizations, including the Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, Learfield, and Monumental Sports & Entertainment.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 14, 2017 – The Philadelphia 76ers today announced Franklin Group as an Official Partner of the team. The Brooklyn-based company, with sales offices across the United States, provides integrated marketing and printing solutions for a diverse group of industries, organizations and commercial entities. The Franklin Group has provided the Sixers with fan-facing printed items including pocket schedules, banners for press conferences and events, plaques, media and staff credentials, brochures, mailings and more.

Seton Hall Athletics and its multimedia rights holder, Learfield, have announced a five-year partnership with Franklin Group. Beginning at the start of the 2017-18 athletic season, the Brooklyn-based company will be designated as the “Preferred Print, Promotional and Signage Company for Seton Hall Athletics.”

For more than 25 years, Franklin Group has served numerous industries, including professional sports. The Seton Hall deal marks the company’s first partnership in college athletics.

Las Vegas’ new NHL club is not the only professional sports team or league with an eye towards Sin City, but talk is cheap, and a Vegas franchise, as Bill Foley knows, isn’t. So do other teams and leagues have a future in the desert? Here are some of the facts that may or may not lead one to believe that Las Vegas will be the next big destination in sports.

Las Vegas Metro Population
2.15 Million (2015)

Visitors to Las Vegas
42,312,216 (2015)

Each year, the US Open tennis tournament attracts 750,000 guests to the blue courts of the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center (NTC) in Flushing Meadows in Queens, New York. During the event's fortnight, the USTA's 46-acre complex morphs into an immersive festival for the players, patrons, and corporate partners to bask in the pageantry and drama of the sport's largest Grand Slam tournament.

A glittering new addition to Sacramento’s downtown, Golden 1 Center opened this October with Paul McCartney in concert. This $557 million, 17,500-seat multi-use arena, which serves as the home of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings as well as a year-round event calendar, does not resurrect the past but offers a convincing vision of the future of arena design. 

So I was on a road trip earlier this summer to Las Vegas, a uniquely American town with uniquely American architecture. I headed over to see Mark Faber who is the Senior Vice President of Global Partnerships at AEG and is responsible for securing the premium sales and sponsorship agreements at T-Mobile Arena, the latest-and-greatest sports and entertainment venue, which has sprung up in the Mojave like a desert flower.

For over 20 years, Franklin Group has served a diverse group of industries and organizations, providing clients with creative, strategic solutions to meet their promotional and print needs.

“We are honored to join forces with Monumental Sports & Entertainment, their teams and digital network,” says Steven Zuller, CEO of Franklin Group. “They are leaders in the sports industry, and we are dedicated to creating a great long-term partnership with such a premium brand.”