Purpose

Knowledge exchange, education & training

Arenas Europe offers a platform for members to connect, enabling them to exchange best practices, share ideas, and learn collectively. As a result, members can acquire fresh insights, knowledge, and innovations to apply within their respective organisations.

Additionally, this approach strengthens Arenas Europe’s position as a leading voice and a beacon of best practice and knowledge-sharing across all areas of the live events industry.

“We all face similar problems but often have different ways of dealing with them.”
Arenas Europe Member, 2023

To provide employees of member arenas with expertise and knowledge specific to multifunctional venues and their operation. To create learning programmes and modules that enable our members to stay ahead of industry challenges. To lead the industry with established, tested practices that support the health, safety, and well-being of all employees and visitors.

Advocacy and lobbying

Over the last 30 years, the number of arenas built throughout the EU Member States has increased exponentially, and we have found ourselves at the heart of the cultural fabric of Europe, delivering societal and economic benefits across the EU.

Since 2018, we have been working to strengthen relationships with EU institutions to ensure the inclusion of arenas in policy-making decisions. Arenas Europe is actively involved in several activities and projects across three key areas: live music, sports, and education, training, and research, and is considered a key advisory partner to European governing bodies.

Arenas Europe works daily to be the leading reference for arenas in Europe and to be an effective voice not only for our members but also for the wider industry. Our activities include building networks, forming industry alliances, engaging proactively with regional, national, and EU-level policymakers, and ensuring we have a seat at all relevant tables of influence.

We aim:

• to provide a strong and unified voice from a position of experience and integrity and to help the EU governing bodies disseminate their messages to EU citizens across our networks,
• to secure a seat at the table allowing us to engage with policymakers and provide vital industry input to ensure effective decision-making,
• to form partnerships with other arenas and federations in our ecosystem, not only to bolster our standing but also to enhance the overall strength of the wider industry.

Networking

Over the last 30 years, the members of Arenas Europe have mutually benefited from their connections with other arenas within the organisation. The networking opportunities have created a platform for executives of member arenas to discuss common challenges, learn from one another, and build long-lasting relationships. This informal exchange of information has been a key foundation upon which Arenas Europe has developed.

We aim:

• o create connectivity by building links and trust between members of Arenas Europe through information sharing and generating ‘outside-the-box’ thinking,
• to create strategic alignment through a shared value proposition incorporating values and statements around mutual commitment and context,
• to create collective action, such as advocacy, a communications campaign, research initiatives or fundraising.

Innovation

As a network, we share a joint ambition to have fully booked calendars, filled seats, and healthy businesses. Arenas Europe facilitates cooperation, knowledge-sharing, and the exchange of best practices to support the development of content in different forms.

In today’s highly connected world, stakeholder expectations are constantly evolving, and judgement can be immediate and damaging when these expectations are not met. There are different needs and priorities to balance, alongside keeping pace with rapid digital evolution and the pressure to adopt more sustainable business practices.

The way visitors consume experiences has changed dramatically and will continue to evolve even faster in the future.

We aim:

• to enable members to develop existing content by sharing best practices and mutual interests and to develop new content by creating partnerships and identifying new business opportunities,
• to create a global hub for benchmark and business exchange and to develop business in new markets beyond Europe,
• to develop space and time between events enabling arenas to become part of a city’s daily life and to work more closely with local destinations and cities to find new revenue streams.