How are venues worldwide preparing for the return of fans? During ESSMA Spotlight, Vince DiGennaro focused on the COVID-19 guide on spectator safety for American venues while Eamon O'Boyle shared research on the process of reopening Irish sports venues after COVID -19.
ESSMA will participate in the project GOALS (Governance-Oriented Actions Levering on environment for Sustainability), as part of the Erasmus+ programme. The project will create awareness, tools and best practices on the domain of sustainability, both on a governance and operational level.
FC Utrecht has built a home for its mascot Tiger and Tigergirl in the center of the stadium.
The mastermind session on sustainability during ESSMA Spotlight brought together 10 stadium industry professionals to discuss recent evolutions in energy management including rainwater harvesting and battery storage systems. In general, we feel the question is no longer ‘should we invest in sustainable solutions’ but rather ‘which sustainable solutions are fit for the current budget and will deliver the most value in the particular stadium situation’.
Croke Park, home of Gaelic Athletic Association, can typically host up to 80,300 fans. Even at a reduced capacity that would still be a large amount of people once fans are allowed back at the stadium. During ESSMA Spotlight, Emma Kelly discussed Croke Park’s preparations and planning linked to crowd flow procedures, how they operated during matches behind closed doors and adapted F&B measures.
Read more on the FC Bayern München documentary, test matches at NEC Nijmegen and Almere City, ticketing at SL Benfica and more in ESSMA’s industry update.
Johan Cruijff ArenA is a key example in the field of innovation and technology. Willem Hegen, Crowd Services Manager at the ArenA, discussed several ongoing projects during ESSMA Spotlight.
The majority of sports and entertainment venues have had the opportunity to welcome back (a small amount of) visitors in the past months. Valuable lessons were learned about hygienic requirements, safety protocols and fan experience. To kick off our first ESSMA Spotlight, John Beattie - Stadium & Facilities Director at Arsenal FC, Adam Baker - Safety Direct at FIA and Cyril De Greve from ESSMA shared their insights during a high-level panel discussion.