Combining sports and leisure: Can Kai Tak Sports Park make HK a centre for international events?

The highly anticipated Kai Tak Sports Park, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, is aiming to inspire the next generation of Hong Kong athletes while making Hong Kong a centre for major international sports events by promoting positive social interaction through the power of sports and leisure.

Apart from promoting the positive impacts of sports, the park will also be introducing a retail area which will house more than 200 retail and dining stores, which is expected to create partnership opportunities for marketers and boost local retail sales, a spokesperson from K11 Group, the leasing agent and operator of the retail area, told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.

The spokesperson also said that the sports park is set to deliver mega-scale sports events and venues with advanced flexible facilities, for things such as the 15th National Games in 2025. “It does not only promote employment and business activities in Kai Tak Sports Park, but also drives the development of peripheral industries such as retail and sales in Kowloon East.”

Accommodating mega-scale events 

Featuring a 700,000 square foot retail area situated next to the 50,000-seat main stadium, industry players MARKETING-INTERACTIVE spoke to believe the 28-hectare sports park can address the existing shortage of spacious venues and house massive crowds of audiences, so as to lure more overseas visitors to Hong Kong and elevate the city’s global status as a sports and entertainment hub.

In fact, Hong Kong has long suffered from a lack of venues suitable for holding events of 5000 to 50,000 people. Main indoor event venues such as AsiaWorld-Expo can take up to 14,000 people, the Hong Kong Coliseum can accommodate up to 12,500, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre can take 8,000.

Judd Christie, managing director of event agency Uniplan Hong Kong said this has been a long-term issue for event organisers in the city.

We frequently encounter issues with finding venues of scale that can accommodate larger crowds or indeed events that require larger scale staging than the current exhibition and hotel spaces can provide.

Besides, Hong Kong has also suffered in comparison to other regional cities, missing out entirely on some recent high profile stadium tours such as Taylor Swift and Coldplay, he added.

“It is my hope that we will soon have an ideal space not only for sport and concert performances but also a highly flexible space that can attract larger commercial events to the city. The addition of a retail space with high profile athleisure will further complement the stadium venue,” he said.

Agreeing with him was Yvonne Ma, founder and managing director of Eighty20, who said the state-of-the-art facilities and flexible venues of the sports park can accommodate mega-scale events, making Hong Kong a preferred destination for global event organisers. She added:

This can enhance the city’s international status as a sports and entertainment hub in the region. The presence of international retail brands is a significant draw for visitors, making the sports park and retail area a must-visit destination.

The lack of large-scale venue could be one of the reasons for big global events or performers to consider alternatives to Hong Kong in the region, but beyond the practicalities, it’s about the brand of Hong Kong, said Tim Ho, founder of brand consultancy Constant.

“The city’s brand can’t be formed by campaigns, it is how much pull we have as a city, our cultural relevancy compared to the rest of the world, also known as ‘soft power’. All the biggest rock stars wanted to perform in Tokyo in the `970’s, and it wasn’t just because of the venue,” he added.

Enhancing HK’s international status as a sports and entertainment hub 

Nonetheless, the launch of Kai Tak Sports Park will certainly bring new energies to the city and add another dimension to the vibrancy if it's with a unique proposition to set itself apart from other iconic places in Hong Kong.

“Taking reference of Ocean Park for education and conservation, Ocean Park Water World for splashing fun, M+ for modern and contemporary visual culture, Xiqu Centre for the traditional Chinese performing art, it's important for Kai Tak Sports Park to find its edge as well. And an interesting place will always feed the curious no matter its size,” said Anna Wong, chief growth officer, Dentsu Creative Hong Kong.

However, while increasing the quantity of bigger events is great for Hong Kong, the international status will depend on the quality of the events and the execution of the new area, said Constant’s Ho. He said:

From the overall curation, retail mix, to the level of flexibility and other practical considerations that event organisers would recognise.

The success of this venture will also largely depend on the unique and immersive experiences that the sports park can offer at scale, which will appeal to today's tourists and event attendees who are seeking more than just the traditional shopping and dining experiences, said Wai Chung Au, managing director of media business, Dentsu Hong Kong.

"The key to success will be to create one-of-a-kind experiences that are memorable and unique, which both local consumers and tourists are willing to pay for," he added.

Therefore, it will be essential to leverage the park's strategic location and world-class facilities to create immersive and engaging experiences that will set it apart from other venues in the region.

Echoing his thoughts was Eighty20’s Ma, who said the success of the sports park and the retail area will depend on various factors, such as the quality of the events hosted, the marketing efforts, and the overall economic and political climate of Hong Kong.

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