Teams Turn to Acrylicize for Stadium Artwork and Design

Over the past two (2) decades, the stadium arms race has resulted in sports organizations across the globe competing to differentiate themselves in the venue space. As a result, teams continually lean on vendor partners to incorporate new technologies, venue destinations, and ownable assets that enhance the fan and sponsor experience.

In most cases, teams look to offset their new technological assets with art and stadium decor that help capture the history of the organization, fans, and iconic venues. In the UK, a number of venue operators and Barclays Premier League teams have turned to a boutique studio called Acrylicize to design and produce custom artwork for their venues. The firm's artwork has been extremely well received by organizations and fans over the past seven (7) years and Acrylicize is now beginning to expand their business operations internationally.

Acrylicize has done some impressive work for a number of iconic venues and soccer clubs in the Barclays Premier League, including:

• Wembley Stadium - Created unique photographic collections chronicling Wembley Stadium's rich history, including 30ft+ wide pieces, 350+ pieces for the tier box level and custom designed artwork for the exclusive Corinthian Club and the Wembley Suite
• Arsenal F.C. / Emirates Stadium - Designed, produced, and directed several exclusive art initiatives throughout Emirates Stadium, including photographic collections, light box displays, visual branding within club and executive level bars and restaurants
• Twickenham Stadium - Produced artwork that referenced both Twickenham's geographic location and its position as the home of English rugby
• Millenium Stadium - Designed the WRU Presidents Lounge
• Tottenham Hotspur F.C. / White Hart Lane - Designed the Steve Perryman Suite

Check out some of their stadium artwork and designs below:

Arsenal Players Dress as Mascots for Fundraising Effort

Are you looking for new ways to drive awareness and support for charitable organizations? Are you looking to create in-game call-to-action that inspires fans in a humorous way?

Arsenal FC recently honored the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, the team's official charity of 2009, by creating a terrific "Fundraising Day" promotional spot to inspire fans. The team is dedicating their November 29th match against Chelsea to the cause and Arsenal players and directors will be donating a day's wages to help raise funds for the team's charity - an act that is unheard of in the United States.

The team's humorous "Fundraising Day" campaign spot features four (4) players (Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott, Andrey Arshavin, and Bacary Sagna) dressed as mascots and roaming the streets in an effort to collect funds for the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity. The club hopes that the promotional vignette will help them meet their "Be a Gooner. Be a Giver" '09-'10 campaign goal of raising 500,000 euros.   

Check out the clip below:

Filming the promotional spot proved to be a hit with the team's players:

"I visited Great Ormond Street Hospital back in August so I know what this means to the charity and the patients. I encourage all supporters to follow our lead and give what they can. This advert is a bit of fun for the players and we hope supporters enjoy it, but there is a very real message in it about helping this Hospital and we hope to raise lots of money for this worthwhile cause." - Cesc Fabregas

Sources:

http://www.gosh.org/news/latest-news/2009-archive/arsenal-gosh-film/

http://www.beagoonerbeagiver.org/news/view.php?Id=1169

Arsenal FC Cherishes its Memories with Time Capsule...

Are you looking for a new way to commemorate your organization's success on and off the field? Are you looking for new ways to engage your fanbase through a unique experience?

When Arsenal FC moved into its new stadium facility, Emirates Stadium, the team honored its 91 years of tradition competing at Arsenal Stadium, Highbury by creating a specially-made time capsule. The EPL team invited current and past players, team personnel, and thousands of guests to attend a special ceremony. Arsenal FC featured footage of the event and exclusive player interviews on its team channel, Arsenal PLUS, for subscribers to view during their free time (creating exclusive content for fans).

The club filled the time capsule with nearly 40 items, 25 of which had been chosen by the team's fans. Items placed in the time capsule included original team jerseys, Captain armbands, and replica models. Arsenal FC placed the time capsule on display at Emirates Stadium for fans to enjoy while attending the club's home matches.

Time capsules serve as an excellent way for organizations to commemorate their history, engage fans, and highlight the best practices of their corporate partners. Tactics teams can consider implementing can include:

• Promotional Offers / Fan Incentives - Teams can ask all fans who attended their games in a given season to submit a ticket stub with their name on it to win free tickets for a decade/lifetime. The team can anonomously place one winning ticket stub in the capsule and announce the winner 5-10 years later when it is opened
• Corporate Partner Engagement - Teams can create "Corporate Partner Capsules" that highlight their initiatives during a given season. When the team opens the capsule in 5-10 years, if any of the sponsors involved are still partners with the team, the club will provide them with exclusive inventory/value (to encourage partners to remain committed to the team, etc.)
• Commemorate Team History - When teams are looking for ways to honor their history when moving into facilities, honoring retired players, and renovating their current venues, time capsules can serve as a great way to commemorate special occasions

Source: Flickr Photos from arsenalfc