VNC Panel Preview: Leagues/Owners Discuss Contemporary Facility-Team Dynamics

VenuesNow Conference Panel Preview: Leagues/Owners: Contemporary Facility-Team Dynamics Tuesday, Sept. 29 3:50 PM – 4:30 PM| Grand Ballroom A & B at the Sheraton Grand Seattle

Our favorite sports teams are, oftentimes, some of the longest relationships in our lives. In many cases, we inherit those affinities from our families. Or because of geography or a favorite player.

Our favorite teams feel permanent, but the reality is, of course, they aren’t. Players come and go, owners change and even that beloved logo might get tweaked. Often, the most permanent thing about our beloved teams is their home venues. Free agents may leave after four years, but the old ballpark is designed to be there for decades.

Even with universal broadcast deals that make following teams from the couch easier than ever before, for the most committed fans, sports and entertainment facilities are the primary interface between teams and their fans, be it collegiate, minor league or professional sports.

Today, venues and teams are partners in every sense of the word, from marketing and promotions and fan engagement to premium and concessions, ticketing, season ticket and suite sales, and outreach into the marketplace.

Teams and buildings need each other and when they operate in synchronicity, each reinforces the other. The home venue advantage becomes an integral part of the team and the fan experience, with examples from the “12th Man” of thunderous crowd noise for the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field to the intimidating, fanatic-first, 50-row “The Wall” fan zone harkening back to the old college university fieldhouses at the new $2 billion Intuit Dome for the Los Angeles Clippers, where fans wear the wrong colors will be relocated to another section.

The VNC panel “Leagues/Owners: Contemporary Facility-Team Dynamics” will offer insights into maximizing the home advantage and revenues. The panel includes Grand Casino Arena Vice President and General Manager Kelly McGrath, in her 26th season with Minnesota Sports & Entertainment, who was integral in bringing the PWHL’s Frost to the St. Paul building, and Sam Kalscheur, Senior Associate & Senior Project Manager at Perkins and Will.

Joining them is Acrisure Arena Senior Vice President John Page and Sarah Schock, Head of Events and Entertainment for Player 15 Group / Phoenix Suns.

VenuesNow Conference takes place Sept. 29-30 at the Sheraton Grand Seattle. Produced by Pollstar and presented by Marsh and Oracle, VNC brings together live entertainment, sports, and venue executives to address the industry’s most critical operational, financial, and strategic dynamics.

VNC 2026 follows the inaugural Secure Venues Summit on Sept. 28 at the Sheraton Grand Seattle, which is being launched by Oak View Group & Prevent Advisors. The event is programmed specifically for safety, risk management, and venue operations leaders, and will feature a Keynote address on the “State of Security in America: Trends, Evolution, and Adversaries in Preparation for the 2028 Olympics in LA” by Voviette D. Morgan (SVP, Safety & Security, LA 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games) .

To register for the VenuesNow Conference 2026 or the Secure Venues Summit, visit venuesnowconference.com and securevenuessummit.com .

_Originally reported by [Pollstar](https://news.pollstar.com/2026/09/24/vnc-panel-preview-leagues-owners-contemporary-facility-team-dynamics/)._