THE IMPACT OF FIFA WORLD CUP 2018 ON THE UAE EVENT INDUSTRY
FIFA World Cup is one sporting event that has the ability to bring people from different cultures together. The 21st edition of FIFA World Cup "FIFA WorldCup 2018" is down to its last match and the hype can be felt everywhere you go. The mega sporting event has not only captured attention in its host country – but has become the talk-of-the-town in almost all the regions of the world – including the Middle East.
UAE, the Middle East's capital, is also struck by the fever of FIFA World Cup 2018 which has resulted in a boom in certain industries – especially the event industry.
Being one of the Middle East's leading venue solutions providers, we at Wicked were tasked by our valuable clients like Emirates Golf Club, Barasti and Media One Hotel to transform simple venues into roaring football fanzones – with totally different concepts representing each venues.
This global mega sporting extravaganza continues to drive huge revenue to the F&B and events industry. A 35m air-conditioned dome is built at Dubai's popular beachside Bar "Barasti" to bring together up to 8000 football fanatics under one electrifying roof, namely Barasti Superdome.
Derryn French, Director of Marketing & Innovation – Mina Seyahi Complex, Barasti considers FIFA World Cup to be the most important event of the year. "It’s the biggest sporting event in human history and certainly in Dubai Football is massive. We have seen incredible amounts of people through Barasti daily- on average 5000 people per day and to date we are looking at over 140 000 people through our doors in 3 weeks," says Derryn French.
As UAE is a melting pot of different nationalities (many of which are participating in the world cup), this 4 week-long global sports event certainly had the potential to give a strong boost to F&B and events industry.
On asking the President of ILEA Association – Middle East, Dan Bolton, to describe the impact of the FIFA World Cup 2018 on the UAE's event industry, this is what he had to say: Due to its global appeal and the fact that Dubai is such a hub for a variety of nationalities, all of which are represented in the world cup, the second biggest sporting event in the world has an obvious benefit to certain sectors of the events industry, increasing consumer spend, promotional opportunities and brand activations all in months that are notoriously quiet for months due to the regions climate.
A giant two-tiered deck is built in the middle of the Emirates Golf Club specifically for footie fans to catch all the action live on the 12 Extra Large Screens, within a perfectly air-conditioned setting.
Adele Cowgill - Head of Marketing & Communication at Emirates Golf Club, is happy to see the influx of football spectators EGC managed to bring. "We have been fortunate to be one of the must visit venues in Dubai to watch the World Cup and European championships for a number of years now, during that time we have welcomed back loyal guests who book with us for every tournament. The venue this year has been the best that we have ever had for the tournament and it has been fantastic to see so many guests enjoying the experience and creating such a great atmosphere," tells Adele Cowgill.
With the football fever on its peak, the UAE F&B and event industry which usually experiences a slowdown in sales during summers managed to keep the momentum going throughout. Dubai coolest terrace – Garden on 8 by Media One Hotel has been transformed into a mega fanzone where football enthusiasts can unite on one platform, enjoy a bite and be showered by special F&B offers while their favorite teams battle it out.
Caroline Rowe, Director of Marketing & Communication – Media One hotel agrees that 2018 FIFA World Cup has been more impactful than the previous ones. "For us it has been as we’ve had the most amazing of venues in garden on 8. Our Fanzone has offered an electric atmosphere for the games and been home to the English, German, Danish, Swiss, Swedish and Australians as well as Dubai 92’s Drive Time and a number of major sponsors. All this combined with our loyal guests and new friends means that we have had a great World Cup. We have to say that we’ve been lucky with the results too," comments Caroline Rowe.
Concluding on 15th July in Moscow, FIFA World Cup 2018's impact on the UAE event industry can definitely not be underestimated. The global sports event has managed to attract a wide audience and has certainly resulted in an explosion of consumer traffic in the country's F&B and event industry.