How Sports and Entertainment Venues Can Deliver Compelling Experiences — Inside and Outside the Gates

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The design of sports stadiums and arenas has come a long way in recent years. Gone are the days of single-use venues that sit empty except on game day. Today, these venues are part of thriving, mixed-use entertainment districts with a mix of hospitality, retail, residential, and other types of spaces that create vibrant destinations every day of the week. As we’ve seen in the design trends emerging in the Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics, sports design has become a type of city design.??

This new approach to the design of sports and entertainment districts seeks to expand the audience for events in and around sports venues, but the fan experience remains at the heart of the design thinking that goes into any new project. ? ?

In today’s hyper-competitive battle for people’s attention, everything from the offerings around the stadium to the seating choices inside are key to engaging audiences with an experience that far exceeds what they can get in the comfort of their living rooms.? ?

We believe that better understanding and improving upon the fan experience is critical to the success of sports venues and franchises. Results of Gensler’s Sports Experience Survey provide insight into how we can use design to meet fan needs and expectations within the ever-evolving landscape of live sports and entertainment events. ?

Fans crave social experiences before, during, and after “the game.”??

• 33% of fans believe that having restaurants and bars in proximity is a top experiential factor in attending a game or event while 70% of recent attendees felt that the experience outside of the venue felt connected to the experience inside.?

• Fans’ ability to meet up with others seated in different parts of the stadium was a strong statistical driver of several game day experience outcomes, including overall great experience.?

• Avid fans (70%) and average fans (57%) expect to have a variety of other things to do while at the event.?

Concerns around affordability persist — designing beyond the “one ticket, one seat” model provides value regardless of ticket level.?

• Just 41% and 48% of fans were satisfied with the prices of food & beverage offerings and parking at their recent sports events, respectively.??

• Affordability rated highest (63%) among the top considerations for attending a sports event with quality of available seating options (47%) coming in second.?

• Seven in 10 respondents would pay for standing room only tickets for their favorite team, and it was even more attractive among younger attendees and those with young children.?

Celebrate arrival — It sets the tone for the entire visit.?

• Fans’ satisfaction with security and venue navigation were top indicators of key experiential outcomes and the likelihood that attendees would want to return for another event.????

• Most (84%) of recent attendees felt that their event had an exciting atmosphere and 75% thought that the venue itself helped foster community among fans and attendees. ?

Looking ahead, stadiums must apply innovation where it matters most — entrance and exits, food and beverage — to achieve more pain-free, exciting, and enriching fan experiences. To create a range of engaging experiences that are only available in and around the venue, designers will need to give people the flexibility to experience the game in the ways they want. This necessitates a wide diversity of offerings and products, because no two people experience a venue and an event in quite the same way. Our challenge ahead is to design places that are all about offering choice.?

More stats and stories you need to know.

• Learn how the Olympics and Paralympics can shape cities in new ways.
• Explore how Atlanta's Centennial Yards project is redefining sports and entertainment districts.
• Read more about how modern training centers can shape athletic performance.

Written by Jon Niemuth, Director of Gensler Sports, and Ryan Sickman, Gensler Sports Leader, and Michelle DeCurtis, Research Strategy Lead for the Gensler Research Institute??

Join the conversation. What makes a gameday experience for you? What additions could stadiums make for you to better enjoy your experience??

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