Brighton & Hove Albion FC have opened their new multi-million-pound fan zone, The Terrace, to a mostly positive reception.
The club opened the venue in time for their FA Cup quarter-final clash with Nottingham Forest, on Saturday, March 29, and thousands have flocked to enjoy the live music, food and drinks available on matchdays since.
Created in partnership with the club’s catering partners Sodexo Live!, the fan zone offers locally sourced food and drink options.
“This idea really came from the club,” Matt Neocleous, regional marketing manager of Sodexo Live!, said.
“They decided that they were going to build this brand new multi-million pound fan zone and they wanted us to help deliver it.
“We want to be that sports bar vibe, where you and a group of lads can come, but also a place that you can come with family and parents.
“It needs to be suitable for everyone, and that aligns with the club’s values and our values as well.”
The fan zone intends to introduce a local hospitality option for a stadium that has lacked this since the club moved to the Amex in 2011.
Alongside aligning values, the venue attempts to align with Brighton’s identity, with food options sourced locally from chefs rooted in Sussex.
This includes the first street food concept from the youngest MasterChef winner ever Steven Edwards, and Lost Boys Chicken, a local favourite.
“They’re obviously well-established in Brighton already and it’s really exciting to be able to work with such a popular brand,” Matt said on Tomas Samandi’s Lost Boys Chicken.
On Steven Edwards, Matt said: “He has been amazing. It’s his first street food concept as well, so it’s as much as a learning for him as it is for us, but he is very experienced and working alongside him is brilliant.”
For fans, the fan zone and investment represent the club’s rapid rise in football – an opinion held by Ryan Adsett, founder of the TalkSeagulls podcast.
“I’ve been watching this club my whole life but every single year that we have been fans, we’ve gotten better,” Ryan said.
“From watching us in league one and being a bit of a banter club… look at us now. We are stood in front of this big thing [the fan zone] out here.
“It’s part of the club evolving and where the club is going. They want to become an established European football club and with that is making it an attractive place to come to.”
The Terrace has a reported capacity of 3,000 in the summer season – the largest of any fan zone in the Premier League – and its opening weeks were met with success in numbers.
“I had a look on the opening day and it was absolutely rammed,” Ryan said as he laughs. “I’m not one of those people that wants to be rammed.”
The fan zone also hosts non-matchday events, such as holiday-themed experiences or beambacks of Brighton away games that fans were unable to get tickets or travel for.
However, some of these non-matchday events have drawn criticism. This includes its Awards Night, which is usually streamed on the club’s YouTube channel, but has been offered to fans as an event at the Terrace.
With tickets at £65, or £75 for premium seating, fans have been invited to watch an exclusive stream of the event that takes place in the Amex stadium just a stone’s throw away from the fan zone.
Tickets include a welcome drink and food and a DJ set from Norman Cook, known as Fat Boy Slim. Some fans are upset with this change to the Awards Night, including 22-year-old season ticket holder Cameron Kell.
“The Awards Night stream is one of my favourite things to watch as an Albion fan every year, but charging £65 is far too much,” Cameron said.
“I’ve been a fan and season ticket holder since I was about four, so to see the club try to charge so much money for a fan-favourite event is a shame.
“If the Awards were actually presented in person [at the fan zone], then of course I would go, but it’s a stream of an event happening inside the stadium, so I don’t understand why the club thinks it would work anyway.
“I understand that they are trying to get the fan zone up and running, but there’s better ways to do it. I’d rather it was streamed on YouTube like normal.”
Other events have been advertised and planned at the venue as the club tests what fans warm to, such as for Eurovision and Father’s Day.
As Brighton continue to grow on and off the pitch, The Terrace reflects the club’s evolving matchday vision. Whether it becomes a staple in fans’ matchday routines is yet to be decided, but early signs are promising.