As Europe's top clubs "jostle for the attention of Asian audiences, Tottenham Hotspur is using its partnership with the behemoth marketing machine that is the NFL to redefine the in-stadium experience and inflate its fan base on the other side of the Atlantic," according to Tony Connelly of THE DRUM. The "state of the art" £750M ($936M) stadium is "due to open next August and will double as a venue for NFL games." From its own micro-brewery and bakery to the stadium's "specially-designed" acoustics, the design for the 61,000-capacity venue has the "potential to set a precedent for a new era of sports stadia" in the U.K. and Europe. Sports marketing company Wasserman Global Head of Research & Insights Shelley Pisarra said, "The reasons why Tottenham have invested in this approach are clear. The club has taken their inspiration from American sports, where arenas are built to support and entertain fans away from the field of play, as well as on it." Increasing White Hart Lane's current capacity of 36,000 to 61,000 will also "take the club's commercial clout up a level" when it comes to competing with its Premier League rivals. Tottenham Exec Dir Donna-Maria Cullen said, "We are competing with clubs that have the bigger capacities and therefore are driving the bigger revenues every day." The benefits the NFL partnership poses for Tottenham are "vast" and it is this relationship which "could give the club an edge over its rivals." The NFL is "by far the most financially dominant sport on the planet," generating around $13B annually and "leading the way with innovative approach to growing the sport globally" with live stream partnerships with the likes of Twitter and one of China's top social media platforms, Sina Weibo. Beyond just the stadium influences there is "much which Tottenham can learn from the NFL's wider commercial strategies." Communications provider MediaCom Head of Sport & Entertainment Misha Sher said, "Tottenham can learn a lot from the NFL in terms of video strategies and entertainment and can replicate this unique environment with its new stadium" (THE DRUM, 2/3).
