Hospitality - definitely not worth it !

[King of Gipsy Lane]

2 hours ago, Delfoxed said:

Im not sure if many of you have sampled City hospitality, or are thinking of doing so but i thought i would share our experience of the day.

 

For my birthday my wife treated me to Fosse Club hospitality for the game against Wolves. We arranged train travel and taxis to be able to fully enjoy the day and was looking forward to watching a game from a different perspective.

At £400 for two it wasn't cheap and in no way was it value for money - the seats were good and would have been about £100 (for 2), leaving £300 for what was little more than a Toby carvery.

No air conditioning, in a very hot room and a QR code bar ordering system - with 300+ people in the room there was very little mobile service so we couldn't order drinks.

 

I understand most of the people in hospitality are from some company on a corporate function but its not a place for the true fan - we'd have been much better to have gone into town for a meal and then gone to our usual seats for the game.

 

Emails to the club have gone unanswered.

I have to say I have never been tempted £400 would pay for a couple of nights away by the sea side 

[An Away Move]

2 hours ago, Sharpe's Fox said:

If you're going to a football stadium expecting decent snap and proper dining service then think again.

Not true. My girlfriend’s dad had two hospitality seats in Highbury á la carte and the three course meal on match days was truly excellent. I used to go there every time Leicester played. Sadly Arsenal got rid of it, having obviously worked out that you can get more £ per square foot by having posh buffet stations instead. So out with all the tables and waiting staff and in with artisan burgers with teenage servers and things you can lean against to eat. He’s not renewed 😭

 

Last time I went hospitality at Leicester it was against Port Vale and I think Pleat was the manager. That was three course and table service. Has all of that gone at Leicester too? Last time I went Fosse it was literally just a big open room with a bar and empty tables. No food.  

Edited 26 August 2021 by SydenhamFox

[AjcW]

Ooooh Bert is lurking.... he works for a company the do Hospitality bits for LCFC  

[The People's Hero]

3 minutes ago, SydenhamFox said:

Not true. My girlfriend’s dad had two hospitality seats in Highbury á la carte and the three course meal on match days was truly excellent. I used to go there every time Leicester played. Sadly Arsenal got rid of it, having obviously worked out that you can get more £ per square foot by having posh buffet stations instead. So out with all the tables and waiting staff and in with artisan burgers with teenage servers and things you can lean against to eat. He’s not renewed 😭

 

Last time I went hospitality at Leicester it was against Port Vale and I think Pleat was the manager. That was three course and table service. Has all of that gone at Leicester too? Last time I went Fosse it was literally just a big open room with a bar and empty tables. No food.  

Arsenal was one of the very best.

 

Chelsea was good too; but that's going back a few years as well.

 

 

[st albans fox]

1 hour ago, Stadt said:

Piss poor, corporate hospitality is the big money spinner wrt matchday income so if the club can’t get it right they’ll be butchering an important revenue stream.

 

 

The only thing that I’ll say in their defence is it’s the first proper home game for 18 months with new staff and systems. Even  so, sounds very disappointing.

I think the covid stuff is an issue considering their only prior experience was 20% occupancy v Spurs 
 

35 minutes ago, ealingfox said:

Its not a cash bar is it? Surely you don't have to pay for drinks at 200 quid a throw.

I would think it is a cash bar, even at those prices !!

 

I know couple people in corporate and they commented that the wolves game was poor, both for quality of food and service 

 

let’s hope it improves because the club have ramped us the cost of corporate based on the upcoming expansion 

 

[KrefelderFox666]

5 minutes ago, SydenhamFox said:

Not true. My girlfriend’s dad had two hospitality seats in Highbury á la carte and the three course meal on match days was truly excellent. I used to go there every time Leicester played. Sadly Arsenal got rid of it, having obviously worked out that you can get more £ per square foot by having posh buffet stations instead. So out with all the tables and waiting staff and in with artisan burgers with teenage servers and things you can lean against to eat. He’s not renewed 😭

 

Last time I went hospitality at Leicester it was against Port Vale and I think Pleat was the manager. That was three course and table service. Has all of that gone at Leicester too? Last time I went Fosse it was literally just a big open room with a bar and empty tables. No food.  

Isn't there just a variety of different packages/grades of hospitality?

[The People's Hero]

1 minute ago, KrefelderFox666 said:

Isn't there just a variety of different packages/grades of hospitality?

Yes; certainly at all PL clubs. Possibly further down the pyramid too.

 

As mentioned elsewhere though; some of the best dining experiences are being eroded, with clubs making more money on a (usually very good) buffet option instead and smaller tables/standing points.

 

 

[StanSP]

10 minutes ago, AjcW said:

 

To make it clear what the packages entail, they shall be hereby named after current and former players

 

- The Vardy: Just the creme de la creme, absolute top tier £800, coke and hookers included, they'll wipe your arse for you in the toilets and everything

- The Kasper: Pretty epic but not quite the vardy, SAVE you a few quid, will have to wipe own arse

- The Wes: Service is a bit slow, but still a nice day out. Rum pairing with each course

- The Sharky: Dependable, your partner will like it as it's not too fancy, finger food and picky bits.

- The Perez: Serve yourself you mad ****, I'm getting paid but I'm sure as shit not going to earn it.

The Youri - everything served up on a silver platter for everyone else to feast on 

[An Away Move]

10 minutes ago, KrefelderFox666 said:

Isn't there just a variety of different packages/grades of hospitality?

That was the top level. Seats right next to the director’s seats on the half way line with the restaurant right behind. They’ve scrapped that but brought in an even posher restaurant for a couple to few grand more. He was offered the upgrade but was paying about £5k per seat as it was and felt they were taking the piss. The clincher though was if you’ve got great seats on the half way line you don’t want to be wandering over to the corner of the stadium and back at half time for all that money. The other option was to move seats to the corner of the stadium where the new restaurant is and pay more for a worse view of the match. I think Arsenal really fecked over even their wealthier fans to try and squeeze a bit more profit out. I feel sorry for the waiting staff mostly. The same ones had been there every week for years and knew all the punters by name and even knew their drinks orders off by heart. 

Edited 26 August 2021 by SydenhamFox

[sylofox]

I really am surprised at this. With king powers back ground I'd expect it to be top notch. I hope Top reads this forum or someone high up.

 

No excuse for not replying to a complaint either.

 

I'm sure the king power group pride themselves on great customer service.

[Daggers]

Hot topic?

 

Is it close season already? 

 

 

[Delfoxed]

Thanks for all the comments, my intention was merely to inform those thinking of buying a hospitality package as i hadn't seen any posts prior to me booking one.

I had been to other clubs hospitality and had great service - though hadn't had to pay for them before 

 

To give more clarity :

The club had apologised on the day regarding the air conditioning and i do understand that this was the first event for nearly 18 months. They also knew there was a problem with downloading the QR system and placing drink orders but said there was no process to pay at the bar by card (only for them to change that at half time because of the queue !!)

There was other minor issues with the experience, bad organisation, PA system intermittent and timings awry.

 

I was surprised because as others have said, the club does so much right.

 

[The People's Hero]

29 minutes ago, Delfoxed said:

Thanks for all the comments, my intention was merely to inform those thinking of buying a hospitality package as i hadn't seen any posts prior to me booking one.

I had been to other clubs hospitality and had great service - though hadn't had to pay for them before 

 

To give more clarity :

The club had apologised on the day regarding the air conditioning and i do understand that this was the first event for nearly 18 months. They also knew there was a problem with downloading the QR system and placing drink orders but said there was no process to pay at the bar by card (only for them to change that at half time because of the queue !!)

There was other minor issues with the experience, bad organisation, PA system intermittent and timings awry.

 

I was surprised because as others have said, the club does so much right.

 

Wow. It DIDN'T include drinks. That is insane.

 

 

[The People's Hero]

So... you paid £200 each for a roast dinner which you describe as like Toby's Carvery; but then 2 x decent seats for the game.

 

And that's it?
 

No visit and an uninterested chat from Mike Whitlow? No photo with Lee Philpott?
 

Tell me you got a free programme?

[Jattdogg]

15 minutes ago, The People's Hero said:

So... you paid £200 each for a roast dinner which you describe as like Toby's Carvery; but then 2 x decent seats for the game.

 

And that's it?
 

No visit and an uninterested chat from Mike Whitlow? No photo with Lee Philpott?
 

Tell me you got a free programme?

I am sure he got  a free lesson on how he should be singing during his meal, before kickoff, all game, and post game until midnight else he isnt a real fan. Imagine if he had gone away and done this!

 

[filthyfox]

Sounds like a crap deal to me...

Were there prawn sandwiches available?

[SemperEadem]

Cushty one on business or not I can't wrap my head around some of these prices some are saying people pay for this kind of stuff.

[filthyfox]

Ok... so 2 years ago i paid 80quid for a hospitality deal at a hotel for the Bournemouth Airshow.

 

What did I get?

 

Exclusive seats on the hotel terrace, with the absolute best view.  All you can drink for 6 hours. MASSIVE buffet lunch, and afternoon tea

[Jattdogg]

10 minutes ago, filthyfox said:

Ok... so 2 years ago i paid 80quid for a hospitality deal at a hotel for the Bournemouth Airshow.

 

What did I get?

 

Exclusive seats on the hotel terrace, with the absolute best view.  All you can drink for 6 hours. MASSIVE buffet lunch, and afternoon tea

That's filthy!

[AjcW]

20 minutes ago, filthyfox said:

Ok... so 2 years ago i paid 80quid for a hospitality deal at a hotel for the Bournemouth Airshow.

 

What did I get?

 

Exclusive seats on the hotel terrace, with the absolute best view.  All you can drink for 6 hours. MASSIVE buffet lunch, and afternoon tea

Bit ****ing niche for a comparison that mate  

[Illusion35]

Perhaps teething problems for first game in a while, although that’s really not an excuse for poor service and hope you get some of your money back!

 

The only time I’ve been in hospitality at King Power was for my 40th birthday back in 2017 when my husband and kids treated me for the game v Man United. My birthday is 23rd December, so the room was all decorated for Christmas. It was very smart. The room was busy but not overly so. The tables were really nicely laid, there were free gifts in each place and drinks were ordered at and brought to our table by waiters. Food was a buffet, but three different stations with a good range of starters, main courses and desserts to choose from. One of the ex-players who work in hospitality came to my table to personally wish me happy birthday and sat to chat to us for a while.  Filbert and Father Christmas came round to see the children who were there. We had good seats for the game and I felt the experience was value for money. Sounds like it’s gone downhill since! 

[filthyfox]

17 minutes ago, AjcW said:

Bit ****ing niche for a comparison that mate  

hardly. Without booze, I would happily pay 50 quid for the experience. Add 70 quid for the footie ticket. The hospitality package should be 120-150quid

[AjcW]

1 minute ago, filthyfox said:

hardly. Without booze, I would happily pay 50 quid for the experience. Add 70 quid for the footie ticket. The hospitality package should be 120-150quid

I meant I highly doubt the demand for the sodding Bournemouth Air Show is quite the same as that of the hospitality for a Premier League football club  

[urban fox]

1 hour ago, The People's Hero said:

So... you paid £200 each for a roast dinner which you describe as like Toby's Carvery; but then 2 x decent seats for the game.

 

And that's it?
 

No visit and an uninterested chat from Mike Whitlow? No photo with Lee Philpott?
 

Tell me you got a free programme?

I thought the matchday experience packages included a meet and greet by former player or some such and stadium tour before sitting down for a pre match meal.  complimentary programme and goody bag/souvenir of the day. At least that is what i would expect for what is being charged. I get that there are likely different levels of package but it seems to me that what was delivered was pretty poor value.

I was once, many years ago, a guest in one of the boxes and there was a full waitress service and everything. No idea how much the hosts had paid but the service and food was excellent.

One can only presume that this is not the sort of thing where they would be expecting a high proportion of repeat business so the motivation to provide a premium value service is not there. 

It does however surprise me considering KPs reputation for doing right by the fans in so many other ways.

[filthyfox]

1 minute ago, AjcW said:

I meant I highly doubt the demand for the sodding Bournemouth Air Show is quite the same as that of the hospitality for a Premier League football club  

I think it is... it was bloody heaving!