DOHA: Josoor Institute, a centre of excellence for sports and events industries, has concluded a course ‘An Introduction to Venue and Stadium Management’ at Aspire Academy.
The two-day course featured world-class speakers, including Luis Silva, COO, Maracana Stadium, the venue of the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup final, and Rod Nenner, Vice-President, Washington’s Redskins.
Topics such as the state of play, stadiums and venues in the Middle East, guiding principles of facility management and environmental sustainability options for modern stadiums were discussed on the first day.
Silva delivered a keynote yesterday, highlighting lessons from Rio on preparing a venue for a mega event, a session on creating stakeholder experience and another on creating an understanding of the commercial aspect of venue management.
“I am delighted to be invited to share my experience of building a world-class sports stadium with delegates from Qatar, the Middle East and North Africa. They were keen to hear and learn from experiences in Brazil. Qatar has begun its journey towards hosting a successful 2022 FIFA World Cup and many other events that will happen before it such as the Qatar 2015 24th Men’s Handball World Championship,” said Silva.
The course hosted local and international experts who provided insights into strategies and operations of stadiums and events. The speakers brought over 125 years of experience and included Feras Btaddini, Head, Aspire Dome, Malcolm Tarbitt, Director, Security and Risk Advisory, ICSS, Rainer Schuler, General Manager, FGB Arena, Andy Young, Senior Consultant, Wembley Consulting, and Iain Barnett, Vice-President, Stadium Division, IMG.
Mushtaq Al Waeli, Adviser to the Secretary-General of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy on Josoor Institute, told the opening session: “Our goal at the committee is to help build sustainable sports industry in Qatar and the region. This will help with a successful delivery of the 2022 FIFA World Cup but significantly Josoor Institute will benefit from events that will take place before and long after 2022. Delegates that benefit from this course and Josoor Institute activities will be at the heart of this new sustainable economy.”
Delegates included representatives from local, regional and international organisations, including the committee, Qatar Stars League, Qatar Football Association, Qatar Foundation, Aspire Logistics, Qatar Handball Association, Lekhwiya Club, Qatar Sporting Club, Al Saad Club, Umm Salal FC, Al Arabi Sports Club, Al Rayyan Club, Khalifa Stadium, West End Park Cricket and regional football associations of Bahrain, Iran, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, the UAE and Yemen.
The Peninsula
