Author: Andrew Lim

10-year partnership incorporates data analytics, research, annual fundraising, premium seating, sales, and marketing into an integrated holistic program

Legends will also team with Syracuse University’s Falk College of Sport & Human Dynamics to provide education, mentorship, and career opportunities to students

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse Athletics and Legends are launching a 10-year partnership to integrate data analytics, marketing, ‘Cuse Athletics Fund annual giving, premium seating, and general ticket sales initiatives into a single fan-focused approach. The partnership will also ensure that the Orange build upon their legacy of supporting student-athletes in the classroom and on the playing fields.

“We are committed to delivering a world class fan and student-athlete experience and Legends has proven to deliver world class ticket sales and philanthropic services among their notable partners within professional and collegiate athletics,” said Syracuse Director of Athletics John Wildhack. “The future is very bright for Syracuse Athletics.”

A central part of the relationship will be the integration of Legends’ robust technologies.

“We are incredibly excited to use these innovative platforms. They will allow Syracuse Athletics to better understand the needs of Orange fans,” said Syracuse Deputy Director of Athletics and CMO Andrew T. Goodrich.

Legends, through its U.S. research arm CSL, will also conduct ongoing market research to assist the department with making informed decisions on potential new seating experiences, fan enhancements, and optimal pricing strategies to maximize attendance.

“Syracuse University has always been an incredible unifying force across upstate New York, and as a native of the area and longtime supporter, I understand the value of Orange Athletics to the community,” said Legends Chief Operating Officer, College Partnerships Mike Behan. “We’re excited to support John and his team. We are especially excited to identify opportunities that will enhance the fan experience and sustain Syracuse’s reputation as one of the nation’s preeminent athletics programs.”

In September, Syracuse Athletics announced the rebranding of the Orange Club to the ‘Cuse Athletics Fund, which was done to in large part to help put a greater emphasis on philanthropic giving. The partnership with Legends will help the ‘Cuse Athletics Fund by identifying additional opportunities for annual fund growth. Legends’ unique fundraising platform, an essential service embraced by higher education, identifies effective fan and donor engagement strategies to amplify philanthropic giving and other opportunities.

Another unique aspect of the partnership is the collaboration with Syracuse University’s Falk College of Sport & Human Dynamics. The alliance between the school’s Department of Sport Management and Legends is committed to advocating for the inclusion of students in the sports entertainment industry. Current students will benefit from project-based and experiential learning, mentorship, and visibility into job openings through unprecedented opportunities for Falk Sports Management & Analytics students to intern with Legends and prepare them for full-time positions upon graduation.

“The Department of Sport Management is extremely excited to be part of this ground-breaking initiative with Legends and Syracuse Athletics.  I have immense respect for what Legends has achieved in the sport industry as an innovative leader and cutting-edge company,” said Falk College Sport Management founding director and chair Michael Veley.  “Our students will benefit greatly from this partnership and its real-world applications, and in turn will be able to provide valuable support in multiple sectors to enhance Syracuse Athletics’ mission to its stakeholders.”

– All-Encompassing Partnership with FSU Athletics and Seminole Boosters Includes Premium Seating, Ticketing, Fundraising, Hospitality, Food & Beverage, Marketing, and Business Intelligence –

TALLAHASSEE, FL – October 4, 2021 – Florida State University and Legends today announced details of a new 10-year partnership that will be far-reaching in scope and integrate strategic planning, business intelligence, data analytics, sales and marketing, annual fundraising, food & beverage and hospitality services into a single revenue-driven program across FSU Athletics and its fundraising arm, Seminole Boosters, Inc. The partnership also involves a 360º approach to drive engagement and enhance the overall fan experience at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Dan Smith, Legends Hospitality President: “We are incredibly excited for the work ahead, and the opportunity to co-author fresh experiences that mirror the passion, dedication and spirit of FSU Athletics.”

As a key part of the holistic relationship, Legends Hospitality was tapped to deliver on a new strategic vision for the food and beverage offers at FSU’s iconic stadium properties. The Legends Hospitality team will initially be operating the in-stadium concessions as well as providing a refreshed and innovative team dining experience for the student-athletes on campus. The partnership marks Legends Hospitality’s first on-campus operation and leverages its quickly growing portfolio of performance-based athlete dining to deliver on “Only at FSU” experiences for athletes, boosters, guests, and members of the FSU/Tallahassee community.

David Coburn, FSU Vice President and Director of Athletics: “Improving the experience for those attending our events continues to be critically import to our entire athletics program. We are partnering with the best in the business in a comprehensive effort to provide our fans and student-athletes with the facilities, amenities and atmosphere they deserve.”

Beginning in 2022, Legends will begin to lay the groundwork for re-imagined premium hospitality and suite experiences at the stadium venues, as well as identify new premium assets both in and out of the stadium to further curate the FSU Athletic Story. This includes Legends’ unique approach to affinity clubs by shaping the fan experience not just on game day but as year-round destination experiences through FSU offerings that fit the needs of its most passionate supporters. The goal of the Seminole membership club is to curate the best things about FSU, Tallahassee, and the region, coalesced into a well-curated member experience that surrounds gameday and non-gameday to keep fans connected to the FSU brand.

Legends was initially engaged by Seminole Boosters in 2019 through its U.S. research arm, CSL, to conduct a comprehensive market study of Doak Campbell Stadium to solicit direct market feedback from Seminole donors, ticket holders, alumni, fans, and supporters with a focus on enhancing the fan experience. Legends will continue to assist Seminole Boosters with strategic planning for the upcoming renovation of the stadium. In addition, Legends will be responsible for leading all donor engagement, marketing and sales campaigns for the transformational project.

Michael Alford, President & CEO of Seminole Boosters, Inc.: “The stadium redevelopment project is vital to the overall success of our athletic department, and it’s exciting to partner with Legends who will bring world-class experience and expertise to our organization. FSU athletics and Seminole Boosters will benefit greatly from the data-driven strategy and process, as well as their proven knowledge across the many areas of involvement within our program.”

Moreover, Legends will introduce robust data and analytics technologies to support all revenue drivers for the athletics department, including annual athletics fundraising. Legends’ unique and differentiated fundraising platform continues to be strongly embraced by the higher education vertical. The business intelligence fueled platform will also deliver deeper, more actionable insights into fan interests, brand affinities, and behaviors, along with how to further improve engagement to ultimately drive philanthropic giving and other revenue opportunities that support the program’s future-forward vision.

Mike Behan, COO, Legends Collegiate Partnerships: “Legends has enjoyed a great relationship with FSU Athletics and Seminole Boosters over the last two years, and we’re excited to continue our work with Michael and his team to introduce a modernized approach to fan engagement and revenue generation.”

– Premium experiences company bringing its 360º suite of services and world-class attractions experience to College Football’s shrine–

ATLANTA, GA – September 15, 2021 – The Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame today announced a multiyear partnership with Legends – a premium experiences company specializing in holistic solutions for sports and entertainment organizations and venues – to manage operations and the fan experience at the interactive and immersive Hall of Fame in the heart of downtown Atlanta.

Through this all-inclusive partnership, Legends will implement its 360º services platform across every major facet of the attraction’s business to build upon the Hall of Fame’s success and keep the Hall at the forefront of the next evolution of fan experience. Leveraging its deep-rooted operational and experiential acumen, Legends will manage a range of services for college football’s shrine including sponsorship sales, ticketing, hospitality services, merchandise, and activation of its global tourism network.

“We are thrilled to join forces with Legends to continue to elevate all aspects of our business and the memorable experiences we create for college football fans across the country,” says Kimberly Beaudin, President and CEO of the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame. “This partnership will strengthen and expand resources ensuring our ability to fulfill our mission and deliver an unparalleled destination as the national home of college football.”

“Legends is honored to represent this iconic Hall of Fame in the great city of Atlanta, and through our 360 approach and attractions expertise we are excited to deliver unforgettable experiences that celebrate the immortals of the game that we all love,” said Mike Tomon, Co-President and COO of Legends.

Including today’s news, Legends’ focus and commitment to Atlanta’s sports, entertainment and tourism business continues to grow and includes an impressive list of other notable teams, venues and attractions, including Georgia Tech. Additionally, Legends has represented the Atlanta Falcons and Mercedes-Benz Stadium as well as State Farm Arena and the Atlanta Hawks’ Emory Sports Medicine Complex. The company’s global attractions business also includes operating several experiential attractions including the One World Observatory in New York City and The View from The Shard in London.

Square and SoFi Stadium Exclusively Partner to Welcome Back Fans with Omnichannel, Contact-Free Commerce

Powerful ecosystem of software, payments, and hardware products makes Square an ideal technology partner for large organizations like stadiums

Los Angeles, Calif. – September 9, 2021 – In a first-of-its-kind, 10-year partnership, Square has been selected as the exclusive point-of-sale (POS), payments, software, and merchant services provider for the new SoFi Stadium, home to the Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams, and Hollywood Park, the 300-acre mixed-use development being built by Los Angeles Rams Owner/Chairman and SoFi Stadium developer E. Stanley Kroenke. Together, Square, SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, and Legends are ushering in a new standard for fan experience and commerce that enables seamless commerce centered around delighting and engaging sports fans and concert-goers, while rising to meet the new challenges, needs, and opportunities facing the entertainment and sporting industry.

https://share.vidyard.com/watch/PkQofUPFKCQAYikjcHx48X

By leveraging all that Square’s ecosystem has to offer, SoFi Stadium is creating a multifaceted and dynamic approach to the game-day commerce experience that will delight and engage fans from pregame through overtime. As a fully cashless venue, SoFi Stadium selected Square’s ecosystem of products and services to power commerce and contactless payments across every checkout and purchase point, spanning hundreds of concession stands, bars, roving hawkers, and merchandise retail stores. Square’s integrated POS software and hardware enable fast, reliable, and convenient transactions and create safe, streamlined payment experiences for fans, including fast check-out speeds and reduced lines.

“SoFi Stadium is a world-class facility and the largest stadium in the NFL. Maintaining that level of service requires selecting technology partners who can match that scale,” said SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park Chief Technology Officer Skarpi Hedinsson. “Square is at the forefront of innovation across payment and transactions and shares our passion for incredible customer service. As a cashless venue, our partnership will offer fast, reliable and secure contactless payments for guests that helps to create a safe and streamlined experience at SoFi Stadium.”

Here’s how SoFi Stadium uses Square’s powerful ecosystem of services to create compelling, omnichannel commerce experiences across the venue:

• Commerce and Operations Software: Integrated Square software solutions including Point of Sale and Team Management offer rich data and sales insights in real-time, enabling stadium managers to better understand trends. This includes information like top-selling items and busiest purchasing times for all concessions, bars, and hawkers, which empowers the stadium to make smart decisions, on the fly, to optimize staffing, inventory, and promotions. Square for Retail powers merchandise locations with business analytics features like inventory and sales reports to maximize revenue opportunities throughout each game or event, while Square Team Management supports the employee experience, enabling quick and easy access to Square’s POS, with unique permission sets that ensure enterprise-scale access controls throughout the system. Both are simple to learn and use, which makes hiring and training large stadium staffs easy for operators.
• Square Hardware: The stadium uses more than 1,000 Square Register and Square Terminal units to power sales throughout the NFL’s largest venue. With separate seller- and buyer-facing displays, Square Register enables smoother, faster payment experiences for employees and fans alike. Additionally, Square Terminal’s handheld, all-in-one payment processing capabilities enable stadium hawkers to take card and contactless payments directly at fans’ seats. All hardware devices are completely integrated and allow the stadium to flexibly power special food and merchandise pop-ups at any location, for any type of event. Square Register and Square Terminal enable fans to pay in any way they prefer, including contactless transactions through tap credit cards or mobile wallets on smartphones and smartwatches, with payment transactions covered by Square’s best-of-breed PCI compliance, privacy protection, and security.
• API Integrations: Square’s APIs enable operators to integrate Square into any front-end fan experience or back-end data system, working seamlessly with any technology vision or enterprise architecture. For example, SoFi Stadium is leveraging Square’s Catalog API to manage inventory and product availability and inform mobile application and digital signage of menus at each concession stand. SoFi Stadium is also enlisting Square’s Orders API to transmit order details from Square POS directly to the kitchen, and Square’s Payments API to provide further business analytics.

Square’s platform also integrates with SoFi Stadium’s best-in-class partners for mobile application development, inventory management, kitchen display systems (KDS), and digital signage for a complete tech-advanced stadium. All in all, Square’s platform enables powerful system integrations between back-end and front-end user experiences across in-person, mobile, and online.

“Square’s integrated products and platform enable sellers of all sizes to run their businesses, and as a proud partner of SoFi Stadium – the biggest and most advanced stadium in the country – we’re eager to continue to show what’s possible for stadiums and retail districts,” said Ashley Grech, Global Head of Sales at Square. “Fan experience, fan safety, and long-term fan engagement will remain top of mind for every sports and entertainment venue for many seasons to come. Square’s continued commitment to providing seamless, reliable, and safe contactless commerce, as well as the data insights operators need to optimize their sales, makes us ideally suited to help organizations modernize and future-proof their operations.”

“SoFi Stadium is the most technologically advanced venue in the world, and we’re committed to keep it that way, which means we only wanted to work with partners who are thought leaders and committed to pushing the envelope with innovation,” said Denise Taylor, President, Global Technology Solutions for Legends Entertainment. “With Square, we were really excited about their commitment to continuous improvement and forward thinking development of their platform. Square is able to help us scale into the future, as the guest experience continues to evolve and we look to offer more mobile commerce solutions. We want fans to be able to enjoy a seamless guest engagement in a secure manner, and Square is the partner that enables Sofi Stadium to do that and change the way we all think about sports technology.”

Along with powering operations and payments for SoFi Stadium, Square is also the exclusive Point of Sale and Merchant Services partner for Hollywood Park and YouTube Theater. This expansive agreement showcases Square’s ability and flexibility to build out stadiums and their surrounding districts and create first-class consumer commerce experiences. Partnering with SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park builds upon Square’s prior expertise powering experiential commerce for venues and organizations, including the Washington Nationals, Ogden Raptors, Speedway Motorsports, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and more. To learn more about Square’s stadium and enterprise capabilities, visit squareup.com/large-businesses.

SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park partnered with Legends, a premium experiences company, in securing this partnership. In addition to operating SoFi Stadium Tours, Legends has been engaged throughout SoFi Stadium on hospitality, premium sales, retail, partnerships and naming rights, technology solutions, and project development.