Anchoring event spaces with hospitality is not a new concept. But when the 401-key Radisson Blu Medlock Hotel opens later this year, the hotel’s neighbours will include not only Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium and the Co-op Live Arena, but also a zip-wire, a sky bar, a host of new food and beverage offerings and a 3000-capacity destination plaza. “We are creating a pioneering blueprint for hospitality developments at stadia,” says Suzanne Speak, managing director UK & Ireland, Radisson Hotel Group.
As part of the ongoing transformation of the Etihad Campus in East Manchester, Medlock Square – destined to become a year-round hub for leisure and entertainment – will help tie together the diverse projects, offering seasonal markets, events and pop-ups. Its evergreen qualities will be echoed by the new Radisson Blu Medlock Hotel, which won’t just serve football fans and concert goers, but can expect to have much wider appeal.
Destination developments
“The hotel will be a footballing destination for up to 60 days a year, while also serving the Co-op Live Arena, which hosts 180 events annually. We will also be delivering some business via our distribution channels and meetings and events offering,” she adds, suggesting the hotel will provide “social glue” thanks to an “attractive design including Zadie’s, the new rooftop bar”, all of which will make the hotel a year-round destination.
Radisson Hotel Group’s UK arm has inked a number of stadia deals in recent times, honing its expertise as one of the industry’s mixed-use specialists. “I spent many years of my career at one of the original football hotels, Bolton Stadium Hotel, which was also one of Radisson’ s first stadium-anchored developments in the country,” Speak says. “Stadium hotels offer an experience that traditional hotel models simply cannot. Travelling supporters bring emotion, atmosphere and energy, while the setting creates unique commercial opportunities.” She highlights the success Bolton has had with its ‘Stay Like a Pro’ package, through which both international and national teams stay for multiple nights, training and dining like ‘a pro’ on site. This type of offer comes into its own during periods when hotels are typically out of season, helping to fill softer demand and shoulder periods.
In 2024, the hotel group inked a deal with Birmingham’s Edgbaston Stadium to develop a 146-room Radisson RED hotel at the cricket ground, which is on schedule to open in time for the men’s Ashes Test against Australia at Edgbaston in 2027. It will include a rooftop terrace, pitch-view rooms with balconies, and other rooms that can be converted into hospitality boxes with external terraces. Meanwhile, last year a new Radisson RED opened at the Allianz Stadium Twickenham, home of England Rugby. Further signings are set to include a 180-key hotel at the Oxford United stadium, to be flanked by a 1000-capacity conference centre.
New build ambitions
What is remarkable about these projects is that they are mostly new builds, testament to the development power of mixed-use schemes. The new Oxford United stadium will be the first football ground run entirely on renewable energy, delivering an all-electric hotel alongside it.
On the sustainability topic, Speak notes that Radisson Hotel Group is about to celebrate the first anniversary of its pioneering Verified Net Zero hotel in the centre of Manchester. The Group has two Verified Net Zero hotels at present – the other being in Oslo – and in March it launched the global roll-out of its Verified Net Zero programme, announcing a target of 100 by 2030. Speak says that while these projects often represent a premium at the investment stage, they do start to pay for themselves quickly.
New era of travellers
Consumers, too, are increasingly studying the bottom line, as UK inflation and interest rate forecasts rise, and energy costs spike due to geopolitical events. She notes that the “post-Covid world of revenge travel” has now become an environment where prices really matter. “From a UK perspective, that might actually mean more staycations and domestic travel, a potential upside for us,” says Speak, citing popular destination properties such as the Park Hall Hotel & Spa in Lancashire, Stanhill Court in Surrey and the View Hotel Folkestone on the Kent coast, as well as the Radisson Blu Jersey.
Adds Speak: “There is a real change today in the average traveller. Guests are no longer simply buying a room for a night – they are buying into the experience. Rooms must be operationally efficient, commercially engaging and locally relevant.” She notes that the global leisure travel market is increasingly focused on a shared goal of a better “work-life balance”. She says: “Another important dynamic is sustainability. From business to leisure travellers, guests are thinking a lot more about their carbon footprint when they travel.”
Speak and her team have to manage these trends amid a “challenging” business environment. “Covid prepared us for a lot of things – we are a very resilient sector,” she adds. But citing phenomena such as the rapid, countrywide closure of pubs and venues, she expresses concerns about legislative pressures. “I don’t begrudge the national minimum wage – people should be paid fairly. But changes to employer national insurance, ratable values and even licensing have created a more costly environment.” While she underlines that technology and AI “will never replace hospitality” she is interested in exploring efficiencies, and using tech “to ease some of the tasks behind the scenes”. There are also interesting innovations on the customer-facing side, from digital check-ins to virtual rooms explorations enabling guests to pick the room they want, not just the room type. This kind of technology has also been added to a suite of MICE services, allowing clients to dress conference spaces virtually and plan event builds.
Underpinning the business, there remains a strong backbone of talent, with employees encouraged to create a lifelong career with Radisson Hotel Group through professional goal-setting. “We spend a lot of time developing people,” Speak concludes. “Talent grows us as a business, and we in turn grow talent, as part of our long-term vision.”