Over 300 guests from football and rugby stadia across the country have celebrated their ‘off the pitch’ successes at The Stadium Events & Hospitality Awards 2015 last night. The awards were the 11th annual awards organised by Stadium Experience and aim to recognise the efforts and dedication shown by the catering, conference and events teams at every football and rugby stadium across the UK.
The prestigious event, organised by Stadium Experience, was held at the King Power Stadium, home of Leicester City Football Club. The evening literally kick-started with live entertainment from the current freestyle football World-Champion, Andrew Henderson, followed by dinner, awards presentations and partying until 4am.
There were a total of 10 possible awards up for grabs. Some awards were entered by the club themselves and others by nominations from colleagues, media and other club directors. The overall winner of the evening was Hull City Tigers, who scooped the top gong for Overall Matchday Hospitality Experience 2015, fighting off tough competition from 25 stadia across the Leagues.
The full list of 2015 award winners includes:
Media Choice Award – Sponsored by Conference News
(Voted for by media attending matches across the UK)
WINNER – Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club
SILVER – Aston Villa Football Club
BRONZE – Manchester City Football Club
Conference Events Sales & Marketing Award – Sponsored by Hospitality Gem
(Judged by a mystery shopper style telephone call enquiry and follow up process)
WINNER – Hampden Park Stadium
SILVER – Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club
BRONZE – Wycombe Wanderers Football Club
Star For The Future Award – Sponsored by The Football People
(Judged by panel of award sponsors and the Stadium Experience Awards committee)
WINNER – Anna Carmichael – Everton Football Club
SILVER – Emily Mills – Leeds United Football Club
BRONZE – Ollie Brown – Southampton Football Club
Operations Team of the Year Award – Sponsored by FC Business
(Judged by panel of award sponsors and the Stadium Experience Awards committee)
WINNER – Newcastle United Football Club
SILVER – Sunderland Association Football Club
BRONZE – Aston Villa Football Club
Chef Team of the Year – Sponsored by Stadium Experience
(A live kitchen event where chef teams are judged by professional chefs on producing the best VIP three-course meal)
WINNER – Chelsea Football Club
SILVER – Aston Villa Football Club
BRONZE – Southampton Football Club
Directors Choice Awards – Sponsored by Verteda
(Voted for by clubs board of directors when they visit an away match)
WINNER – Norwich City Football Club
SILVER – Arsenal Football Club
BRONZE – Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club
Matchday Hospitality Awards – Sponsored by Salon Culinaire
(Reported by professional chef judges who experienced hospitality at UK clubs this season using strict criteria)
Matchday Hospitality Award – Small Stadium (up to 750 hospitality seats)
WINNER – Saracens Rugby Club
SILVER – Morecambe Football Club
BRONZE – Notts County Football Club
Matchday Hospitality Award – Medium Stadium (751 – 1500 hospitality seats)
WINNER – Hull City Tigers
SILVER – Bolton Wanderers Football Club
BRONZE – Leicester Tigers Rugby Club
Matchday Hospitality Award – Large Stadium (1501+ hospitality seats)
WINNER – Aston Villa Football Club
SILVER – Hampden Park Stadium
BRONZE – Tottenham Hotspur Football Club
The Big One – Overall Matchday Hospitality Award
WINNER – Hull City Tigers
SILVER – Aston Villa Football Club
BRONZE – Hampden Park Stadium
Jo Austin, Head of Sales for Lime Venue Portfolio, who hosted the event at the King Power Stadium, said: “It was a great privilege for us to host the Stadium Events & Hospitality Awards at the fantastic King Power Stadium. What a great night celebrating the superb achievements of the conference and events teams at some the UK’s finest sporting venues. These awards go to show just how hard stadiums have worked to become an attractive proposition for meetings and event’s organisers.”
Stadium Experience Chair Person Collette Salmon, from Liverpool Football Club, commented: “Our teams take it to the limits each year and this is a time to recognise all of them who strive to bring excellence in their venues across the UK, the hard work never stops! We at Stadium Experience are proud to host the annual Stadium Events and Hospitality Awards. Congratulations to all of tonight’s winners!”
Dan Coulson, General Manager of Catering & Events at Hull City Tigers, said: “We are absolutely delighted and incredibly proud to have won this award. It’s a wonderful reward for a dedicated, passionate and hard-working team and all of the fantastic local suppliers that we try to showcase in our hospitality offering.”
Charlie Wijeratna, Chief Commercial Officer at Aston Villa Football Club, added: “A big thank you and well done to all the team at Aston Villa, we are delighted that the hard work of our team has been reflected in us receiving a host of awards at this prestigious event. To collect five on the night is a great achievement. We pride ourselves on the excellent food and service we provide, but it won’t stop us striving to deliver even better standards next season – and hopefully more awards!”
Jane Thomson, Sales & Revenue Manager for Hampden Park Stadium, said: “The events team at Hampden Park is thrilled to take the Conference & Events Sales & Marketing Award back to the Home of Scottish Football for the 2nd year. We have invested a lot of time and effort in creating a service that ensures the best value for our customers and hope to continue improving our services throughout the year.”
Hugh Vyvyan, a Director at Saracens Rugby Club, added: “We are delighted to win the award. It has been an amazing week for Saracens Rugby Club having just been crowed champions of England on the pitch. This award is also great recognition for our Allianz Park match day staff, a stadium and team that is only two years old. Huge amounts of praise needs to go to Georgina Martin and Clare Ludlow for managing our match day hospitality, Leaf catering for the amazing quality of Food, beverages and staffing, and also to the help of our match day Pioneers (voluntary helpers) and Captivate London who provide fantastic attention and care for our hospitality clients.”
Kathy Taylor, Sales & Marketing Manager for Sodexo Prestige at Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club, commented: “It was a great result for Brighton to have won awards in three categories. The Stadium Experience Awards are a fantastic way to recognize our team’s hard work and dedication to ensuring all of our guests have the best experience when visiting our venue.”
See the latest updates on The Stadium Events & Hospitality Awards.
