Not so long ago, sports venues’ only offerings for groups consisted of games, basic stadium tours and modest gathering spaces. They now include a wide range of unique, personal experiences as well as highly imaginative meeting areas.
Here are some of the top options for groups in two of America’s leading stadiums.
Marlins Park, Miami
The 37,446-seat home of the National League’s Miami Marlins sits on hallowed ground. It’s on the former site of the Orange Bowl, a Miami icon since the 1930s and for many years home to the Miami Dolphins and University of Miami football teams.
Marlins Park, built in 2012, is comfortable and roomy, and like the city in which it sits, its design is cool, colorful and eclectic.
Meeting and event attendees are encouraged to engage with Marlins baseball before, during and after their events. Special events tours are offered every day, and they’re customizable, in terms of marketing and branding. In addition, attendees can walk out on the field and into the batting cage or locker room, and visits by current or former Marlins players can also be arranged.
Team-building exercises include special events such as sensory experiences in The Club and interactive batting practice inside the Marlins clubhouse.
In all, there’s 150,745 sq. ft. available to planners. The Legends Level is perfect for corporate training and breakouts, and the First Base and Third Base dugout clubs are luxurious spaces for social events. The Clevelander is a Miami icon, an open-air Art Deco watering hole in the outfield with fantastic views, multiple bars and even a swimming pool.
Weather is never a factor there, because Marlins Park is a state-of-the-art ballpark with a retractable roof; it’s the first retractable-roof structure in the world to earn LEED Gold certification. In fact, 49 percent of the stadium’s content is recycled, including rubber flooring in the clubhouse that’s composed of recycled Nike sneakers.
The stadium sits on the edge of downtown, with stunning views of the Miami skyline.
Banc of California Stadium, Los Angeles
When it opened on April 18, 2018, Banc of California Stadium became the first open-air stadium built in Los Angeles since 1962. Holding 22,000, it’s the home of Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Football Club, and it brings more than $350 million in private investment to Southern Los Angeles.
Banc of California Stadium offers premium amenities and hospitality spaces throughout, among them a chef-driven international food hall, event rooftops and specialty bars. It’s equipped with state-of-the-art technology and sightlines that create an intimate, close-up experience for fans.
There are 4,800 parking spaces on-site, and dramatic views of the downtown skyline. Meeting attendees can enjoy customized tours of the facility and walk onto the field—or even conduct team-building exercises on it.
Event spaces include the Field Club, seating 575; the Founders Club, seating 450; and the open-air Sunset Deck, seating 350.
Read about more sports stadiums and arenas that feature excellent options for groups in Steve Winston’s story, “Game On: Many Sports Venues are Creating Big Wins for Meetings Groups” in the January issue of Smart Meetings. Coming soon.
