Gone are the days of queuing for hours to snag a coveted stadium seat – these days, a few taps on a smartphone are all fans need to land individual or season tickets. For businesses, this makes creating an exclusive VIP experience for clients or employees even simpler.
We’re shining a light on the ins and outs of mobile ticketing and why these digital solutions are changing the game for businesses seeking luxury sporting and concert hospitality packages.
Let’s get started.
The Rise of Mobile Ticketing in the Sports Industry
Mobile tickets have been on their way for some time now, accelerated by the pandemic as the world had to embrace online, well, everything.
Swansea City was the first football club to introduce mobile ticketing, with other top clubs soon adopting the tech – and the rest is history. Now, most clubs partner with a tried-and-tested ticketing platform like Ticketmaster, StubHub or Fanpass. Others prefer to sell exclusively via their website, especially for season tickets.
It’s clear why the football industry prefers mobile ticketing. Digital tickets are harder to counterfeit than their physical counterparts, avoiding exploitation by ticket touts – one Manchester United versus Chelsea match saw 5,000 tickets snapped up by bots, which a fully digital system could better counteract.
Mobile ticketing also offers many data insights so clubs and event organisers can better understand attendance patterns and fan preferences. This data-driven approach is vital for marketing campaigns, engagement strategies and ensuring fans get the tailored information and experiences they’re after.
Why Mobile Ticketing is a Game-Changer for Business Hospitality
The rapid adoption of digital ticketing has been a boon to the football industry. Here’s why mobile ticketing is hailed as a game-changer for businesses seeking to impress clients, reward employees or network in style at football events.
Effortless Management
Event organisers will breathe a sigh of relief at how much easier mobile ticketing makes the logistics of managing ticket buying. With digital tickets, companies can easily distribute access to guests via email or dedicated apps, ensuring everyone has their pass on their smartphone. After all, every VIP experience should be as seamless and simple as possible.
Brand Engagement
Digital ticketing platforms can offer fully customisable support so companies can add branding or personalised messaging to the ticketing experience. It’s a simple feature that reinforces brand presence and creates a more memorable experience for the VIPs attending a football match.
Real-Time Comms
The mobile ticketing ecosystem provides a direct communication channel with guests, offering real-time updates on event schedules, venue information or exclusive offers. This means businesses can enhance the hospitality experience with VIP access, exclusive areas or complimentary extras for their football guests.
Data Insights
Companies can use the collected data to improve and personalise their future hospitality events via mobile ticketing. Understanding which aspects of the event were most enjoyed or additional services were most valued is a recipe for continued improvement and success.
How Mobile Ticketing Enhances the Football Event Experience
Mobile ticketing also opens up new sponsorship avenues for the football industry. Last year, Google Pixel announced its new long-term partnership with the Football Association (FA), the first of its kind for the phone and earbuds producer.
The most immediate benefit of mobile ticketing is dramatically reduced wait times at stadium entrances. Fans can now bypass the long queues at ticket booths and turnstiles with digital tickets readily accessible on their smartphones. Many stadiums have taken the time to upgrade their turnstiles to work with mobile ticketing.
Away games have always been harder to secure tickets for. Digital platforms are trying to remedy this with new solutions, like Ticketmaster’s Away Ticketing feature that offers the same digital ticket fulfilment as home games. Given that the Premier League sets aside a minimum of 10% of ticket allocation to away fans, mobile ticketing has been a game-changer for away fans.
Given fans are now encouraged to buy tickets through football club apps, there are opportunities to engage the fans before, during and after the live match. From real-time updates on matchday schedules and traffic advisories to offering venue maps and information on food and merch stalls, the apps are one-stop hubs for fans to get exclusive info.
The Future of Mobile Ticketing
As many use cases for mobile tickets focus on security, we expect to see innovation in this area. Clubs like Manchester United and Arsenal, which have already gone fully digital with their tickets, will have to keep up with the latest developments in QR codes, ticket swapping and bots so fans and businesses can still enjoy a seamless experience.
Ticketmaster recently introduced event organisers selling tickets on the site alongside issuing NFTs on the Flow blockchain, with 70,000 commemorative NFTs issued at the Super Bowl LVI. This kind of exclusive digital merch is designed to add a layer of exclusivity to any sports event and VIP experience.
With the dawn of new tech like the Apple Vision Pro, augmented reality is another avenue mobile ticketing could explore. Goggles and sunglasses equipped with AR could recreate a digital version of the stadium so fans can see the view from every seat. This could also map out the premium hospitality areas for businesses to best decide how to spend their events budgets.
Final Thoughts
Mobile ticketing is a key innovation to enhance the overall football event experience. For businesses looking to host VIP experiences for their clients or reward their teams, mobile ticketing looks and acts the part in any high-end hospitality situations.
Looking to elevate your football event experiences to the next level? Don’t miss the opportunity to be at the forefront of this digital revolution in sports hospitality. Explore our range of Liverpool FC hospitality packages today and discover how easy and rewarding it is to enjoy the beautiful game in style.
