Major League Soccer (MLS) celebrated its stars at the National Building Museum on Saturday as part of the 2007 MLS Cup extended weekend. (In its third year as the host city, Washington provided the backdrop for a series of events—from cocktails to clinics—that started Thursday and culminated with the 2007 MLS Cup match at RFK Stadium on Sunday.) The MLS gala dinner brought together 750 of the league’s players, coaches, managers, owners, and community partners for an award ceremony.
Guests entered the museum through a side entrance into a large reception area softened by sheer white floor-to-ceiling draping. Three bars and two dozen highboys draped with black-on-black striped linens and topped with votives and small rose-filled arrangements warmed the space.
“It’s like planning a wedding, a big wedding—every year,” explained MLS vice president of special events Geoff Hayes, who has been with the organization since 1998. “In 2004, we decided to switch to a seated event, which allowed for a condensed program, but it also created some hurdles.”
According to Hayes, the three-course dinner gives guests fewer food choices, and moving 750 people from the reception area to the dining area proves challenging—but this year, by creating three tiers of V.I.P.s designated by color, the event moved from cocktails to dinner without much ado. The “super V.I.P.s” (owners and investors) were led to their red tables by MLS event staff and seated according to a pre-designed chart. "Very V.I.P.s" (coaches, managers, and players) were seated at green tables reserved by each team, and the V.I.P.s (community partners, sports agents, and other guests) found places at the remaining white tables. The red, green, and white color palette mirrored MLS's logo colors.
The biggest challenge of the evening was not seating the 750 guests, but rather setting the room for the night. St. Louis-based AEG Live Events (a subsidiary of Los Angeles's AEG Live) produced the event, and director of business development Michael Boltzman explained that they were not able to gain access to the venue until Saturday morning. “The event production business is 50 percent advance planning and 50 percent troubleshooting," he said. "We weren’t able to do a sound or lighting check until 5 p.m., and when guests are scheduled to arrive at 7 p.m., that leaves little room for error.”
At 8:30 p.m., just as the last guests found their seats, the 30-foot flat screens that flanked the stage came alive with footage of MLS players commanding the field. Music filled the room, creating an energy within the event to match the players on the screen. MLS commissioner Don Garber kicked off the 25-minute awards presentation while guests dined on millefeuille of Roquefort, roulade of chicken with charred arugula, saffron rice, haricot verts, and julienned carrots from Occasions Caterers. Following dinner, guests headed back into the cocktail reception area for an open bar and some background music courtesy of an iPod.
