In season or out, sports-related venues are hot today for corporate entertaining, with facilities available for fans of most major sports.
"When you compare it to a typical hotel ballroom, it's much more interesting to clients to come down here, much more of a conversation piece," says Joe Giles, director of business development for the Philadelphia Phillies, about the attractiveness of the team's new ballpark. "It's something different and unique that clients can talk about."
Opened in the past year, the Phillies' Citizens Bank Park (215.463.6000) has eight venues for entertaining, ranging from a room seating 25 to the main concourse and plazas, which can hold receptions for 5,000. The Diamond Club lets guests catch a peek of the Phillies' indoor batting cages; it also contains plasma-screen TVs and a state-of-the-art sound system. Anheuser-Busch, Mercedes-Benz, Pfizer, and Toyota have taken advantage of the venues' corporate services, which include appearances by former Phillies players and the team's mascot; placement of messages on the scoreboard or auxiliary boards; and year-round tours of the park, including the dugout, playhouse, and field.
Also opened in the past year is the FedEx Forum (901.205.1522), home of the Memphis Grizzlies and University of Memphis Tigers. Its uniquely Memphis theme—music—is apt, since the arena is located on Beale Street, and Memphis is the home of the blues and the birthplace of rock 'n' roll. The Smithsonian's Rock 'n' Soul Museum, which provides an overview of the history of Memphis music and its role in the development of modern music, is located right in the arena, and can be rented for pre- or post-game receptions.
Other facilities available here include Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 Sports Bar; Opus, a fine-dining facility; Backstage, a casual restaurant; and the Blues Zone, for functions for up to 350 guests. The Texas Motor Speedway (817.215.8500), in Fort Worth, lets corporate guests use all facilities, from the Victory Circle and infield road course, to the media center, with theater-style seating. Guests can even do laps in pace cars or Nascar Nextel Cup and Busch race cars, or participate in corporate leadership programs, offered here since last year by Texas Driving Experience.
The American Airlines Center (214.665.4218), home of the Dallas Mavericks, has numerous function spaces accommodating groups as small as 12 to as large as 366. A recent corporate outing there included a luncheon for 300 followed by the chance to shoot free throws on the basketball court.
Cooperstown, New York, home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (607.547.7200), is also home to the Otesaga, a grand, Georgian, 96-year-old resort on the shores of Lake Otsego. The Hall of Fame building itself can be rented, with its signature space, the Hall of Fame Gallery, available for off-season events. The Otesaga (607.547.9931) has 13,000 square feet of meeting space, ranging in size from a meeting room for 12 to a dining room that seats 300. The hotel also has an 18-hole golf course with a new, 11-acre driving range. Besides playing golf, meeting attendees can play a game of baseball on Cooperstown's legendary Doubleday Field, an old-style ballpark featured in the movie A League of Their Own.
This past October, during the height of the World Series, Ron Rusinek, a Buffalo, New York-based partner business manager for Hewlett-Packard, brought customers and software developers to the Hall of Fame and Otesaga. The timing of the event appealed to everyone, Rusinek says, and they especially enjoyed Cooperstown's natural surroundings and its "nice, quaint village."
—Jane L. Levere
Posted 06.06.05
This story originally appeared in the April/May 2005 issue of the BiZBash Event Style Reporter.
"When you compare it to a typical hotel ballroom, it's much more interesting to clients to come down here, much more of a conversation piece," says Joe Giles, director of business development for the Philadelphia Phillies, about the attractiveness of the team's new ballpark. "It's something different and unique that clients can talk about."
Opened in the past year, the Phillies' Citizens Bank Park (215.463.6000) has eight venues for entertaining, ranging from a room seating 25 to the main concourse and plazas, which can hold receptions for 5,000. The Diamond Club lets guests catch a peek of the Phillies' indoor batting cages; it also contains plasma-screen TVs and a state-of-the-art sound system. Anheuser-Busch, Mercedes-Benz, Pfizer, and Toyota have taken advantage of the venues' corporate services, which include appearances by former Phillies players and the team's mascot; placement of messages on the scoreboard or auxiliary boards; and year-round tours of the park, including the dugout, playhouse, and field.
Also opened in the past year is the FedEx Forum (901.205.1522), home of the Memphis Grizzlies and University of Memphis Tigers. Its uniquely Memphis theme—music—is apt, since the arena is located on Beale Street, and Memphis is the home of the blues and the birthplace of rock 'n' roll. The Smithsonian's Rock 'n' Soul Museum, which provides an overview of the history of Memphis music and its role in the development of modern music, is located right in the arena, and can be rented for pre- or post-game receptions.
Other facilities available here include Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 Sports Bar; Opus, a fine-dining facility; Backstage, a casual restaurant; and the Blues Zone, for functions for up to 350 guests. The Texas Motor Speedway (817.215.8500), in Fort Worth, lets corporate guests use all facilities, from the Victory Circle and infield road course, to the media center, with theater-style seating. Guests can even do laps in pace cars or Nascar Nextel Cup and Busch race cars, or participate in corporate leadership programs, offered here since last year by Texas Driving Experience.
The American Airlines Center (214.665.4218), home of the Dallas Mavericks, has numerous function spaces accommodating groups as small as 12 to as large as 366. A recent corporate outing there included a luncheon for 300 followed by the chance to shoot free throws on the basketball court.
Cooperstown, New York, home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (607.547.7200), is also home to the Otesaga, a grand, Georgian, 96-year-old resort on the shores of Lake Otsego. The Hall of Fame building itself can be rented, with its signature space, the Hall of Fame Gallery, available for off-season events. The Otesaga (607.547.9931) has 13,000 square feet of meeting space, ranging in size from a meeting room for 12 to a dining room that seats 300. The hotel also has an 18-hole golf course with a new, 11-acre driving range. Besides playing golf, meeting attendees can play a game of baseball on Cooperstown's legendary Doubleday Field, an old-style ballpark featured in the movie A League of Their Own.
This past October, during the height of the World Series, Ron Rusinek, a Buffalo, New York-based partner business manager for Hewlett-Packard, brought customers and software developers to the Hall of Fame and Otesaga. The timing of the event appealed to everyone, Rusinek says, and they especially enjoyed Cooperstown's natural surroundings and its "nice, quaint village."
—Jane L. Levere
Posted 06.06.05
This story originally appeared in the April/May 2005 issue of the BiZBash Event Style Reporter.