AusLeisure

The Staydium Glamping innovation at Auckland's Eden Park and launch of Dubai's Coca-Cola Arena have been named as winners in their categories at TheStadiumBusiness Awards 2020.

The Coca-Cola Arena secured the Sponsorship, Sales and Marketing Award for its launch in the United Arab Emirates last year while Eden Park secured the Product Innovation Award for its Staydium Glamping initiative - in conjunction with Samsung and Airbnb - for transforming the way venues do business.

Celebrate the global stadium sector’s outstanding success stories of the previous 12 months, Australasia and the Asia Pacific were on the shorlist across most of the Awards' categories.

Perth's Optus Stadium was shortlisted for the Venue of the Year Award, the 2019 Manchester United FC tour (Optus Stadium/VenuesLive/Tourism WA) was shortlisted for the Event of the Year Award, Uhuru’s UriCall app-free in-seat ordering at the Kyushu Grand Sumo Tournament in Japan was shortlisted for the Product Innovation Award, while the Sydney Cricket Ground was shortlisted in two categories: the Fan Experience Award and for its Compostable Packaging Initiative which was shortlisted for the Sustainability and Community Award.

In addition to its Award win, the Coca-Cola Arena was on the shortlist in three award categories - the Venue of the Year Award and the Fan Experience Award while the new venue's Chief Executive, Guy Ngata, was shortlisted for the Executive of the Year Award.

The full list of category winners is:

Venue of the Year Award
Winner: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK

Executive of the Year Award
Winner: Rick Welts, President and Chief Operating Officer, Golden State Warriors, USA

Event of the Year Award
Winner: Metallica & SF Symphony Orchestra opening Chase Center, San Francisco, USA

Unsung Hero Award
Winner: Kath Phipps, Receptionist, Aon Training Complex, Manchester United FC, UK

Fan Experience Award
Winner: Curva Futura at Cagliari Calcio, Italy

Product Innovation Award
Winner: Staydium Glamping at Eden Park, New Zealand (Samsung/Airbnb)

Sustainability and Community Award
Winner: Mental Health First-Aid Initiative at The NEC Group

Sponsorship, Sales and Marketing Award
Winner: Coca-Cola Arena launch in new market, UAE

Venue Technology Award
San Francisco 49ers Executive Huddle (SAP/49ers)

Historically the awards are announced at a gala dinner held during TheStadiumBusiness Summit, but in line with current restrictions on travel and gatherings, this year the winners have been announced online. Winners and those shortlisted, along with the Outstanding Achievement Award, will be celebrated at a Winners’ Party during the rescheduled TheStadiumBusiness Summit on 29th and 30th September 2020 at Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester, England.

Commenting on the Awards, Ian Nuttall, co-founder of TheStadiumBusiness Awards, stated "the stadium sports and entertainment sector is in turmoil. Never before have so many events been cancelled, so many venues closed - with such broad restrictions on travel put in place. And there is little end in sight.

“Congratulations to everyone who reached the shortlists. My personal thanks to the expert judging panel who gave their time and expertise at this difficult time. Winners included our sector’s leaders, achievers and stand-out venues, who should all be very proud of their achievements last year. Their work provides ideas and inspiration for everyone in our industry as we move towards re-opening and welcoming the fans back to our facilities.”

Now in their 11th year, nominations were judged by an independent panel of industry figures comprising:

• Professor Denise Barrett-Baxendale MBE, Chief Executive, Everton FC
• Mike Bohndiek, Chief Executive, PTI Smarter Venues
• Michael Bolingbroke, Senior Executive in Leisure & Sport
• Peter Bryan, Vice-President of Construction and Development, Chase Center
• Christine A Lau, Senior Director, Sports & Community Programming, Singapore Sports Hub
• Marie Lindqvist, Vice President and General Manager, Stockholm Live
• David Manica, Principal, MANICA Architecture
• Ian Nuttall, founder, TheStadiumBusiness
• Milton O'Brien, Director of Commercial, Venues Canberra
• Raj Saha, General Manager, Fiserv Forum
• Mika Sulin, Chairman, Sport & Live Vision.

Images: Coca-Cola Arena (top), glamping at Eden Park (middle) and Sydney Cricket Ground (below).

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