Abbey has a well-established relationship with the client and has been working with On Location on the Aer Lingus American Football Classic since 2012. For the 2024 Aer Lingus Classic, the number of Welcome Event guests we would likely need to accommodate was up to 3000, so a venue that could accommodate that size was required.

We sourced and negotiated venue options for the client and attended site visits on their behalf and with them.

We worked with our preferred venue to build an exciting program for the event which we presented to the client. Slane castle Rock Farm was chosen as it was close to Dublin, could accommodate up to 3,000 guests and would be an ideal authentic location to share Irish culture.

Abbey built a logistics and operations plan for bringing guests directly from their hotels to the Slane Castle Rock Farm and contracted and managed relations with coaching companies.

We worked with the venue to ensure appropriate entertainment was booked, including music, poetry, Food & Drink and a local craft village, and the site plan and organisation would meet the clients standards.We also booked guides to entertain guests for the journey.

We worked with local officials to plan the transport operations and got their signoff to close a local bridge.

We designed a VIP experience which included private tours of Slane Castle and Slane Castle Distillery.

We ran the event on site with a large staff presence, working in collaboration with the client and the venue staff.

We ensured budgets were adhered to and did full end to end event management took place for a successful event.

Managing the logistics for the event at Slane Castle Rock Farm was a significant challenge due to the traffic of 70 buses entering and leaving the site. We successfully contracted and coordinated 70 guides to entertain guests during their journey, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable experience for all attendees.

One of the highlights of the event was the performance by the FSU band, which played to the crowd on-site, creating an electrifying atmosphere. Additionally, the presence of Mundy added a special touch to the event, delighting the guests with their performance.

Sourcing and negotiating venue options for the client was a challenge due to the small number of venues that can hold over 2,000 guests. Slane Castle Rock Farm was chosen for its proximity to Dublin, its capacity to accommodate up to 3,000 guests, and its ideal setting to share Irish culture.

Slane is approximately one hour from Dublin so a challenge would was the length of time guests would be on a coach. To ensure all guests had an enjoyable journey we organised entertainment on the buses, wrote a script including Irish culture, games and prizes, and organised professional tour guides to deliver it on each coach.

There was significant complexity involved in building a comprehensive logistics and operations plan for transporting guests directly from their hotels to the venue. We worked closely with coaching companies and local authorities to manage relations and ensure smooth transport operations. All guests arrived and departed the site safely.

Entertainment was a key focus, and we worked with the venue to book appropriate acts, including music, poetry, food and drink, and a local craft village. The site plan and organization met the client's standards, and we designed a VIP experience that included private tours of Slane Castle and Slane Castle Distillery.

On the day of the event, we had a large staff presence on-site, working in collaboration with the client and venue staff to ensure everything ran smoothly. We adhered to budgets and provided end-to-end event management, resulting in a successful and memorable event.