Arthur Stanley
TWO of Stadium Australia’s biggest events of 2015 – the back-to-back visits by Tottenham Hotspur and English Premier League champions Chelsea – have been acknowledged for their huge contributions to sport and tourism in Australia.
In a glowing recognition of the success of these events, Tottenham Hotspur v Sydney FC on Saturday 30 May and Chelsea FC v Sydney FC on Tuesday 2 June have been selected as Finalists at the prestigious 2015 Australian Event Awards.
The football blockbusters were the result of Stadium Australia working in collaboration with Destination NSW – the NSW Government’s lead agency for the NSW tourism and major events sectors.
The Stadium Australia events have been named as National Finalists for the following categories:
- Best Sporting Event: Chelsea FC v Sydney FC – International Football Friendly;
- Best Tourism Event: Tottenham Hotspur FC International Football Tour;
- Best Achievement in Marketing and Communication: Tottenham Hotspur FC v Sydney FC – International Football Friendly.
Further to the above three Award categories, the Tottenham and Chelsea events are also in the running to be crowned Australia’s Favourite Event.
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The Australian Event Awards is the pinnacle awards program for the events industry and honours the best events in the nation. The Award winners will be announced at the 2015 Australian Event Awards Ceremony at Doltone House, Pyrmont on Tuesday 17 November.
The two football games were part of a week-long celebration of sport at Sydney’s Olympic stadium dubbed the #WeekOfBlockbusters, preceded by State of Origin I between NSW and Queensland on Wednesday 27 May.
More than 250,000 fans passed through the Stadium Australia turnstiles during a week to remember in Australian sport.
Greg Sleigh, General Manager Event & Business Development at Stadium Australia, said: “The #WeekOfBlockbusters was an historic period for the Stadium and for Sydney.
“To play host to more than 250,000 sports lovers from throughout Australia and deliver not only the best local sports product in State of Origin but two of European football’s iconic teams in a week-long celebration of sport was an extraordinary achievement.
“We’re delighted that these two very unique events have been acknowledged in their own right at the Australian Event Awards, not only for what they brought to the Stadium but what they brought to Sydney as a whole.”
Melinda Madigan, General Manager Marketing & Membership at Stadium Australia, said: “These two must-see football blockbusters took the Stadium Australia and Sydney brands to new heights via two targeted and extensive international multi-media marketing campaigns.
“Each event exceeded all interstate and international visitation targets, and combined achieved over 150,000 ticket sales which was a fantastic result for Sydney and NSW.
“To be selected as a Finalist in the Australian Event Awards for Best Achievement in Marketing for the Tottenham Hotspur FC v Sydney FC International Football Friendly is something team Stadium Australia is extremely proud of.
“From the moment the superstars of Tottenham Hotspur arrived in Sydney, fan engagement reached new heights.
“Working closely with Destination NSW, we had airport take-overs welcoming the team, staged a once-in-a-lifetime Sydney Harbour BridgeClimb with two lucky fans joining the entire Spurs team, and world-first bridge pylon projections as part of Vivid Sydney which were beamed globally.
“We held numerous community coaching clinics including one with the Special Olympics program, staged an open training session where thousands of fans got up close with their heroes, and amplified the event and engaged with fans from all over the world via an intensive #SpursInSydney social media program and a heavily targeted marketing and communications campaign reaching out to football fans, leisure sporting enthusiasts and attendees of major live sporting events.
