Around The World Hospitality: Germany
Making Space For Joy With The Hospitality Group
Throughout my 6 years at The Hospitality Group, I was lucky enough to travel the world experiencing some of the biggest sporting events, and meeting lifelong friends that have now become family. This series of blogs will explore in depth each destination throughout the journey to CAPE, highlighting the hospitality elements, exploring the many venues we frequented, and taking time to appreciate those little moments of joy we brought to our guests.
Hamburg was host to my first international event as I travelled to support on our Europa League Final hospitality. Coincidentally it would end up being the first time I would see Fulham FC play. Little did I know that the home of the ‘local team’ on that night would become such a regular destination one day…
The Europa League Final: 2010
A glamorous start, we got to host our group of over 80 guests at the Fairmont Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in Hamburg, a stunning 5-star resort, the epitome of European luxury! It was the perfect backdrop for our champagne reception, four-course lunches and hosting celebrity guest speakers to entertain our clients throughout the Europa League Final in 2010.
The match was won by Spain's Atlético Madrid, who, after extra time, beat England's Fulham 2–1. The win gave Atlético their second major European title, following the 1961–62 European Cup Winners' Cup. Having beaten defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk on the way, Fulham were playing in their first final in only their second season of European football, and their second major final overall in the club's history.
Hospitality Venue Spotlight:
Luxurious Fairmont Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten is the epitome of a traditional European grand hotel. Since its opening in 1897, the elegant hotel at the Inner Alster Lake in the heart of Hamburg welcomes its guests from all over the world in charming magnificence and timeless elegance.
Stadium Spotlight:
Volksparkstadion, The People’s Park Stadium (previously names the HSH Nordbank Arena from 2007 - 2010) can hold up to 75,000 people, and is a UEFA category 4 stadium which makes it eligible it to host UEFA Europa League and UEFA Champions League finals.
Moments Of Joy:
Sitting down and enjoying a glass of wine at the end of the night, I remember a remark from my colleague, “We come here to work, and then go home, that’s the job”. At the time, this comment made me question if I was doing the right thing…but surely you have to make the most every situation and find the little moments of joy in each event.
Hospitality Covered:
Germany became a regular fixture on our calendar and we’d host further football events in Munich, Berlin, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Cologne, Essen, Bremen, Gelsenkirchen Formula 1 in Hockenheim & Nurburgring, golf in Munich and back to the Hamburg Arena for the knockout boxing match between David Haye and Klitschko the following year.
If there is anything I would take away from these experiences, I found over and over that the smallest acts of friendship from virtual strangers bring joy to almost any experience and make for the most memorable moments.
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Email us at fly@corporatecape.com