A Super Host City: Indianapolis

By Jackie Reau, Game Day Communications
NASC Member

On Friday, I traveled over to Indianapolis to visit Super Bowl Village in downtown Indianapolis. I had no intention of going to the game but did want to see first-hand how the Super Bowl 2012 Committee was coordinating the fan fest opportunities. I had been keeping tabs on the planning and festivities through the Committee’s terrific website and regular email reports.

In a word to describe Indy’s Super Bowl efforts: Wow!

Sure the game was great (congratulations to the New York Giants) and the commercials were fun to watch, but the true winner in Super Bowl 46 was the city and people of Indianapolis.

Here are a few observations from Indianapolis that we can all think about when planning our next event—big or small.

Engage and Empower Volunteers

Who knew what the power of a blue and white scarf would be? More than 13,000 volunteers helped orchestrate the activities in and around Super Bowl Village and they were recognizable by their blue and white scarves—all knitted by volunteers.

Everywhere you turned, you saw a friendly smiling volunteer ready to help. They were at Monument Circle taking free photos on their iPads, greeting fans at The Huddle, the indoor merchandise shop and working the lines for fans to get their photo with the Lombardi trophy (a 25-minute wait which moved fast).

But the best part of the volunteers who embodied the spirit of “Hoosier Hospitality” was how they would finish a sentence: Have a Super Day! It was evident that the volunteers have been properly trained in customer service and had been positioned in areas that best suited their experience and interest.

Make It Fun

Free concerts, an 800-foot zip line, corn hole and stadium food. The Super Bowl Village in Indianapolis was fun! It was the state fair for football fans, and fans from around the world traveled to see it. As you walked the blocks of Georgia Street from the Stadium to the Convention Center, you would see fans in jerseys from many NFL teams, including those not even playing in the Super Bowl as well as soccer jerseys from the UK and Mexico.

The NFL Experience, with its $25 ticket (very reasonable), featured interactive exhibits from NFL Draft Day to photos with the Lombardi trophy and the live set for the NFL Network.

The pros from Wilson were making footballs just as they would at the factory. XBox and the Cartoon Network entertained the youth fans while the merchandise area offered everything a football fan could imagine.

It Takes a “Compact” Village

The best part of the Super Bowl Village was the proximity to the stadium and the convention center. The six-block, Block Party was filled with food, beverages, two live music stages, games for adults and kids and sponsor exhibits.

<Map link of Super Bowl Village: http://www.indianapolissuperbowl.com/files/SuperBowlVillage_Map_FINAL.pdf>

Fans could park once at their hotel or garage and easily walk up and down Georgia Street to the various activities.

Indianapolis has set the bar for future Super Bowl celebrations! While New Orleans, a seasoned party throwing city, knows how to manage such celebrations, I am sure their planners were taking notes on some new improvements.

Congratulations, Indianapolis! Job well done.

Tags: best practices, Community Relations, industry trends, mega-event, NASC, sport event industry, Sports, Sports Commissions, sports event industry, Sports Event Industry Conferences, Sports Events Industry, Sports Tourism, Super Bowl