The first Host City Americas takes place one week today – on 29-30 June – with the greatest figures in sports, business and entertainment events tackling a highly topical agenda finalised today.
Host City Americas is broadcast from NEP Group’s Creative Technology studio, with 65 speakers joining from three continents and with an interactive online global audience (register here).
The online conference opens with a Keynote Address from Anita DeFrantz, Vice President, International Olympic Committee and Board Member, LA28. She addresses the sporting, societal, and economic opportunities in the Americas and bring into focus her expertise concerning LA28.
The panel that follows, Emerging from the Perfect Storm, opens with a special update from Prof. Uğur Erdener, Chair of the IOC’s Medical and Scientific Commission on preparations for a safe Olympics in Tokyo. He’s joined on the panel by Gabriela Ramos, Assistant Director-General, UNESCO, Al Kidd, CEO & President, Sports Events & Tourism Association and fellow IOC Members Ingmar De Vos, President, International Equestrian Federation (FEI) and Anita DeFrantz.
The Santiago 2023 Pan American Games Organizing Committee’s CEO Felipe de Pablo, and CCO & CMO Juan Carlos Chamy then give a Project Update. Later in the day, they chair a workshop where international experts ask about opportunities to get involved in the project.
Erin Bromaghim, Director of Olympic and Paralympic Development, Office of the Mayor of Los Angeles and David Siegel, President and Chief Executive Officer, Los Angeles Sports Council and Southern California Committee speak on the panel “Creating legacy before, during and after large-scale events”, joined by Mickel Beckers, Director of Sports, Culture and Education, City of Rotterdam and Rick Sleegers, International Affairs at Orange Sports Forum, which is co-producing the panel.
After a presentation on “Creating Digital Twins for Major Events to Unlock Operational and Commercial Value” from Paul Foster, CEO & Founder, OnePlan, the third panel, “Leading the World with Esports”, stars Beng Choo Low, Secretary General, World Baseball-Softball Confederation, Paul J. Foster, Chief Executive Officer, Global Esports Federation, Matt Archambault, Head of Partnerships & Business Development I Esports I North America & Oceania, Riot Games.
This is followed by a presentation from Monica Paul, Executive Director, Dallas Sports Commission
Panel 4 asks the question “Can Private Investment Save Traditional Sports?”, with Finn Taylor, CEO, Volleyball World, Matt Pound, Director, World Table Tennis and Gareth Balch, CEO, Two Circles.
The following panel, coproduced with NEP Group, explores “The Changing Media Landscape” with Peter Hutton, Director of Sports Partnerships, Facebook, Yiannis Exarchos, CEO, Olympic Broadcasting Services and Brian Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of NEP Group, with Katie Traxton, Chief Communications Officer of Formula E sharing insights on working with influencers.
Three more organising committee leaders: Niels de Vos, Executive Director, World Athletics Championships Oregon22; Nick Sellers, CEO, The World Games 2022 Organizing Committee and Chris Carroll of Lake Placid 2023 Winter World University Games; join Gary Meador, Director of Event Services Team at Aggreko North America to discuss the challenges and opportunities of “Organizing major events in the Americas in 2022 and beyond”.
Day Two opens with a workshop on Hosting Events with International Federations, in which Event Hosts and International Federations exchange hosting plans, priorities and requirements. Coproduced with the International Association of Event Hosts (IAEH), the speakers are: Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, VisitScotland; Janelle Janis, Director, Edmonton Events; Nichapa Yoswee, Senior Vice President in Business Development of Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB); Sabrina Ibanez, Secretary General, FEI; Jim Scherr, CEO, World Lacrosse and Tom Dielen, Secretary General, World Archery.
This is followed by a presentation, Digital Transformation in Major Event Planning from Simon Johnson, Chair, Rugby Football League and Joe Cusdin, CEO & Founder, Iventis.
The topic of “How to Capture and Retain Audience Attention” is tackled by panellists: Emily Blitz, Digital Event Strategist, Inter-Parliamentary Union; Tom Andrus, COO, AXS; Sarah Lewis OBE OLY, Global Sports Leader, Presidential Candidate FIS 2021; and Sara Kvarfordh, Communication Manager, Stora Enso – presenting sponsor of the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships.
The next panel, sponsored by Aggreko, asks “How Important are ESG Criteria to Event Audiences?”, with expert views from Jimena Saldaña, Vice President, Mexican Olympic Committee, Brian Lewis, President, Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee and Karin Korb, Paralympian and Para-Sport Consultant.
The theme of sustainability continues in a presentation on "Racing for the future, racing for purpose" from Willie Cruickshank, Race Series Director, World Championship Air Race.
In Panel 9, Alan Gilpin, CEO, World Rugby, Angela Ruggiero, Co-Founder & CEO, Sports Innovation Lab and Ricardo Fort, Founder, Sport by Fort Consulting bring tips on “Expanding the Frontiers of an Event’s Commercial Ecosystem” before Gideon Clark, Business Director, Mailman Group USA presents on “The Next Age of the Global Sports Tourist”.
For Panel 10, coproduced with the Association of Global Event Suppliers, we go “Back to the Future” to find out “How COVID-19 Has (and Hasn’t) Changed Live Events” with Jim Mercurio, Executive Vice President & General Manager at San Francisco 49ers – Levi’s Stadium, Jeremiah Yolkut, Director, Major League Baseball, Russ Simons, Owner and Managing Partner at Venue Solutions Group, LLC and Tad Bowman, Venue Director, Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Denver Coliseum, City and County of Denver.
Eoghan Gill, Director of Strategy at S2|FOAMHAND gives a presentation on safe and secure event hosting.
Host City Americas closes with a panel on how all stakeholders in the events industry can “Get fit for the future”, with David Goldberg, Senior Advisor, TPG and Board Member, GAN, Dr. Melita N. Moore, Board Member and Chair of Health & Wellness Commission, Global Esports Federation and Ricardo Trade, CEO, Brazilian Basketball Federation and former CEO of the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Host City Americas is supported by:
Event Delivery Partner NEP Group; Official Sustainability Partner Aggreko; Gold Sponsor Orange Sports Forum; Preferred Events Technology Partner OnePlan and Silver Sponsors Dallas Sports Commission and Iventis.
Edmonton Events, S2|FOAMHAND, Mailman, Global Esports Federation and World Championship Air Race are Strategic Partners to Host City Americas.
The conference is delivered on the Eden platform by Creative Technology, as part of NEP Group.
Join 1,000+ participants at Host City Americas to discover the opportunities ahead as we emerge from the pandemic to a landscape defined by digitalisation and large-scale investment.
For more information visit www.hostcity.com or email ben.avison@hostcity.com
