Last night, the latest Sport Industry Socials event of 2023 took place at the F1 Arcade in St. Pauls, London.
‘Immersive Sporting Experiences’, the second Socials meet up of the year, saw Sport Industry Partners, Members, NextGen Leaders and special guests invited to London’s latest experiential venue.
Using bespoke racing simulators uniquely developed alongside Formula 1, F1 Arcade creates a digital ecosystem that generates the feeling of being on the track.
Inside the exclusive private room, guests were given the chance to test themselves behind the wheel and find out why the capital’s newest sport and hospitality crossover is quickly becoming one of the hottest tickets in town.
Before heading to the track, we welcomed an accomplished panel to explore the growing appetite among sports rightsholders to enter the hospitality and experiential space, with four experts to delve into the topic.
Hosting the discussion was Katie Mallalieu, Senior Manager, Global Strategic Partnerships at Hilton. The global hotel chain recently won the Experiential Marketing Award at the FEVO Sport Industry Awards 2023 for its A Stay On The Green activation with the DP World Tour.
The panel also included F1 Arcade’s Head of Partnerships, Perry Smith, Marketing Director at Rematch, Barney Dufton, and Head of Creative and Brand at Tottenham Hotspur, Kieran Murphy.
Barney drew on his experience at Rematch, the Secret Cinema-esque immersive sports experience, to discuss the differences to between music and sport, and its desire to utilise its past.
“The music industry loves delving into its catalogue and its history. However, in the sports industry, there are all these dormant IPs, dormant moments,” Barney commented. “There are so many tools available to be able to tell these stories and that creates a huge opportunity.”
Perry also spoke about opportunities in the immersive and interactive space and highlighted where F1 Arcade plans to grow further.
“As anybody interested in Formula 1 will know, there is huge growth in the US market for the sport. Therefore we have seen an opportunity and will be heading over to open up sites in the US. This concept is a unique way for fans to engage with the sport in a completely different setting,” Perry said.
The F1 Aracde is not the sports only recent experiential investment. Kieran spoke on the go-karting track being built underneath the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and claimed that the decision for Spurs to partner with the rightsholder was simple.
He said, “Formula 1 considers itself the greatest motorsport spectacle in the world, and that isn’t just on the track. If you are lucky enough to have been to a race, you know that everything around it is high quality and entertaining too. The race is just like the headliner on the Pyramid Stage on Sunday!”
“So, when we decided to build a karting track underneath our football and NFL stadium, it was an easy choice”.
Following an audience Q&A, and with drinks and food served, it was time to strap into the simulators as guests competed to be named the sport industry’s fastest racer!
Access to Sport Industry Socials is exclusive to Sport Industry Members. Sport Industry Members can attend SIG events, enjoy discounts to attend the FEVO Sport Industry Awards and receive free award entries every year.
Find out more here.
.
.
.
.
.
.
“Formula 1 considers itself the greatest motorsport spectacle in the world, and that isn’t just on the track. If you are lucky enough to have been to a race, you know that everything around it is high quality and entertaining too.
KIERAN MURPHY, TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
