In Focus: How fan-zones can expand match-day.

From Newcastle to St. Louis, clubs are turning the hours around a match into a commercial opportunity. The lessons reach well beyond the biggest stadiums.

The traditional match-day experience has long been a simple one - fan arrives at stadium, watches match and then goes home.

Well, perhaps not that straightforward for everyone. Some will meet up with friends before the game, perhaps for a beer or two, maybe for lunch. Others will head out after the game to celebrate or drown their sorrows. But until recently the football club was only involved in that short window around the 90 minutes. Fan-zones are an attempt to expand that window. And they are evolving quickly:

• They are now assets that can be attract brand sponsorships. Last month, Newcastle named Coca-Cola its official soft-drinks partner and presenting partner of St. James' STACK.

• STACK opened in August 2024 with 56 repurposed shipping containers, 11 food vendors, bars, big screens and a stage. It was designed to trade seven days a week with concerts and events bringing in the crowds on non-matchdays.

• It logged 38,000 visits and 26,000+ pints in its first four days.

• Everton's Budweiser Fan Plaza, launched with capacity for 17,000, follows a similar model.

The principle scales down. A gathering space gives a partner somewhere to sell, sample and activate while allowing the club to increase its F&B offering.

But not everyone was happy in Newcastle.

Local pubs challenged STACK, fearing lost trade. Their legal challenge was rejected in December 2025, but the concern remains: is the club building a competitor to neighbourhood businesses, or a platform for them?

St. Louis CITY SC chose the platform route. Its CITY Flavor programme puts local restaurants at the centre of stadium food, shaped by 10,000+ supporter suggestions. The club even hired award-winning chef Gerard Craft as 'Chief Flavor Officer'.

• Low barrier:no entry fee, ownership-funded equipment and fit-out, and rent as a percentage of sales.

• Results: local restaurants ran the ten best-performing stands in 2024, with $2.5 million+ going to them and 60%+ of sales made before kick-off.

• Wider identity: the programme sits alongside free plaza block parties with music and local food and drink.

The MLS club has found a way to create F&B spaces for fans before, after and during games, which promote rather than compete with local businesses.

Clubs will have different goals. Danish club Brøndby's marketing director cited family demand and a full family lounge as reasons to expand. The new Fanzone Nord, opened in August 2026, has a club-branded burger outlet serving customers both inside and outside the zone.

For smaller clubs, the starting point is not a new building. It's a deliberate choice about layout, programming and which customers the club currently fails to serve.

Food and music are the basic entry points for many clubs.

• Yokohama F. Marinos: food trucks are part of the draw, and one advertised matchday paired a 2pm kick-off with activities from 10am. The activities make the space more than just a collection of trucks.

The approach scales both ways. While a club like Union Berlin is happy with fans gathering around two or three sausage and beer stands, keeping the vibe traditional and affordable (which are central to their brand), major events show the potential at the largest scale:

• FIFA:9 million+ visits to 2026 World Cup fan festivals across 13 cities, 6.3 million+ food-and-beverage units sold and 113 partner activation spaces (repeat visits included).

• UEFA:6.2 million EURO 2024 fan-zone visits against 2.7 million stadium attendances, with 351 food-and-beverage stands and 65 sponsor stands.

• Australian Open:217,999 Opening Week attendances, up from 116,528, plus 47,800 at concerts. Surrounding activities became products in their own right.

• Sharks rugby:SharksFest 2026 put two headline acts after each of three matches, included in the ticket. A reason to stay after the whistle creates another trading window.

Few clubs can match that scale, but the idea transfers: the valuable audience isn't limited to people holding match tickets.

A lower-division or start-up club should begin with a proposition: why would someone spend more of their day with us? A modest pilot could combine a few local vendors, seating, a family activity and a sponsor-supported programme. The key metrics should be:

• How many people use the space • How early they arrive and how long they stay • What they spend • Whether the club keeps enough income to cover the extra cost • Whether vendors and sponsors want to return

Newcastle and Everton show the sponsorship potential, St. Louis a way to involve local business, Brøndby the value of serving distinct audiences, and other sports how entertainment can extend the day. The aim is something supporters use repeatedly, on terms that work for the club, its partners and the businesses around it.

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GLOBAL

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EUROPE

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SOUTH AMERICA

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ASIA

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AFRICA

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