The hospitality team at Emirates Old Trafford has reported its busiest period on record after the club hosted 10,000 hospitality covers across six ICC Cricket World Cup fixtures since 16th June.
The club had 6,600 staff on-site for the duration of the matches with an aim to deliver a first-class hospitality experience for fans and supporters.
Tailor-made service
Across the six ICC Cricket World Cup fixtures, 9,471 guests received hospitality at Emirates Old Trafford. For the India vs Pakistan match, special Halal and vegetarian menus were created for the teams’ supporters who travelled thousands of miles to watch their teams play.
Behind-the-scenes, the hospitality team – which consisted of staff in front of house, kitchen, bar, VIP, ushering and administrative roles – worked thousands of hours collectively.
From transforming hotel rooms at the on-site Hilton Garden Inn into private suites, to coordinating the delivery of ingredients for thousands of covers per game, the team pulled together to deliver an outstanding experience for cricket fans who travelled up to 14,000 miles for the tournament fixtures.
Due to ticket-demand, the Emirates Old Trafford team also facilitated 562 off-site hospitality covers at Manchester United for the two biggest games at the ground – India v Pakistan and the semi-final, India v New Zealand.
Across the matches held at the stadium, 10,000 coffees, 150,000kg of biscuits and 1,500 meals were served to journalists while they relayed commentary back to their respective titles.
Catering for the unknown
Preparations by the Emirates Old Trafford team were two years in the planning. However, on Tuesday 9th July, when India played New Zealand, the club’s plans were put to the test when the match was rained off halfway through and rescheduled for the following day; a last-minute change of plan which required the team to coordinate with suppliers and staff.
Angela Hodson, head of sales at Emirates Old Trafford, said: “The ICC Cricket World Cup has been an incredible opportunity for our hospitality team to showcase our offering under the spotlight of a global audience. This experience we provided was a huge step up from previous years in terms of the furniture, branding, interactive activities for guests and the authentic foods that we offered, and it’s fantastic to have welcomed so many guests.
“We have invested significant time and resource in training our teams to deliver an unparalleled experience. We know we have world-class facilities and our hospitality offering has received incredibly positive feedback which will drive us forward ahead of the Ashes in September.”
Author: Molly Hookings
Molly joined the editorial team in March 2019. She has several years’ experience working in broadcast and journalism, as well as marketing and PR. Past experience includes working for the BBC and independent publishing houses. If you have a story you think Molly might be interested in, please email: molly@eventindustrynews.com
