BACKGROUND
In 2017, London became the first city to host both the World Para Athletics Championships and IAAF World Championships in the same year. Both events were held at the Queen Elizabeth Park London Stadium, home of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
It was the biggest global event of 2017 and brought together 3,300 world-class athletes from more than 240 countries who competed in 30 sessions across 20 jam-packed and action-fuelled days.
More than 700,000 athletics fans attended the IAAF World Championships, far exceeding the previous attendance record of 417,156 at the 2009 event in Berlin. The World Para Athletics Championships attracted a further 305,000 sales, exceeding the total for all previous tournaments combined.
OUR ROLE
In July 2016, STH was appointed as the sole, exclusive provider of hospitality for London 2017 featuring the IAAF World Championships and World Para Athletics Championships scheduled to take place in the Olympic Stadium within Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park during July and August 2017.
The appointment followed our previous success at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games where we achieved record breaking travel and hospitality sales.
The STH operations team worked closely with London 2017 to design and deliver a series of exclusive hospitality experiences within the stadium.
Our Diamond Package included an exclusive, behind-the-scenes tour for the first 100 purchasers before the hospitality suites opened. The tours were conducted by former athletes, including Greg Rutherford and Jason Gardener, who took the guests into the competition areas, as well as the athletes’ final call area and a walk on the track along the 100m straight. All guests were also allowed on the winners’ podium for photos.
A key pillar of our marketing strategy was the development of a set of designs that integrated into the London 2017 brand’s look and feel. This allowed STH to promote the hospitality programme as an official part of the IAAF World Championships.
We also developed unique content to help raise awareness of the hospitality packages on offer including 360-degree images of the hospitality suites and a series of videos with our Official Ambassador, Jonathan Edwards CBE.
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Our world class sports and hospitality services ensure spectators can completely immerse themselves in the passion and drama of the occasion and enjoy a shared experience they will remember for a lifetime.
STH is a partner that you can trust. With the strong backing of our shareholders Sodexo, the foundation of our business is secure, and their expertise is also called upon when required to further enhance the professionalism and expertise we bring.
We are industry leading, innovative and trustworthy, with a long and enviable track record of consistent excellence across some of the biggest sporting events in the world.
