Sports events are events that bring together a large number of people. The excitement felt during the celebration is noticeable in the atmosphere, however, that excitement can be transformed into a loss of rational control.
Security at sporting events is a must that we must contemplate from the very first moment we start with its organization. Large crowds of people, frenetism or emotional contagion are factors that can jeopardize security, in addition to other factors such as natural or technological incidents.
How to improve security at sports events
Events are events that should be fun and entertaining for all attendees, however, sometimes unforeseen events arise that can take a radical turn and truncate the idea of event that we had organized.
You have nothing to worry about, if you want your sporting event to be as safe as possible, we have compiled a few tips to apply. Security is essential, it brings peace of mind to attendees and even improves their well-being. Shall we start organizing a totally safe event? Let’s go!
Identify threats
First of all, stop and ask yourself this question: “If I organize this event, what could happen?”. Grab pen and paper and start writing down all the possible threats and scenarios that cross your mind and could happen, even the most unlikely ones.
To ensure safety during our sporting event, we must objectively identify and evaluate all surrounding circumstances. Gather as much information as possible about:
- Climatology and location: many natural hazards are predictable, others less so. However, we have access to compilations of climatological information from thousands of vacations.
Look for as much information as possible about the location where your sporting event is going to be held, for example: probability of rain, probability of snowfall, wind gusts, temperature, etc.
Keeping all this information in mind puts us on alert for possible torrential rains, floods, snowfall and heat waves. If during the chosen dates there are records of these natural events in the chosen location, it may be necessary to reconsider doing it during other days or months.
- Dates of the event: the dates on which we are going to carry out our event can provide us with relevant information in terms of safety.
In addition to the weather on those days, we must bear in mind whether other events and acts that may interfere negatively with each other are taking place during those days. For example, two soccer matches of teams that may generate conflicts among their fans may be held on the same day.
- Number of attendees: the number of people attending the event is extremely relevant. A large number of attendees will require greater control and security.
During events, excitement and freneticism intersect and result in an inhibition of danger and increased invincibility, which can increase the number of incidents caused by the action of the attendees.
- Venue and facilities: what is the capacity of the venue, what are the conditions of the facilities, does the venue have emergency exits or should they be considered? These are questions we should ask ourselves and study. Keep in mind that these events usually gather large numbers of people, so the venue and facilities must be prepared for it.
Now that we have identified all the possible threats, it is time to draw up our security, contingency and evacuation plan. It is not mandatory, however, this document will provide us with all the necessary information in case of any type of risk or unforeseen event. A good security plan guarantees the well-being of the public, the staff and the facilities themselves!
The event staff is key
The staff of our event is essential for everything to go smoothly. When the number of staff is “proportional” to the number of attendees, the public’s perception of safety increases.
An increase in the perception of safety can potentially reduce conflicts. Besides, an optimal number of staff, especially security staff, ensures greater security not only at the level of perception, but also at the level of performance.
If we have elaborated that security, contingency and evacuation plan we mentioned, we must make it known to all employees of our event. Everyone should be aware of how to act in case of emergency or in certain situations.
Staff, organizers, promoters, private security personnel and all the people who will participate in the event must be informed of the action protocols, emergency contacts and know who to contact in each case. To this end, we must maintain a two-way communication with all members of the team.
Technological solutions
Technology also influences security. Technological developments are creeping into sporting events as security tools.
We have compiled some of our technological solutions that will increase the security of your event. They improve your event along with the well-being and experience of the attendees and, not least, of the event organizers (promoters, organizers, security, staff, etc.).
- Access controls: the access to the venue is the first point of contact with the attendees and a key moment to avoid ticket forgery. To accredit attendees, Gofun has our control system that improves security and verifies access to the event.
These access control systems collect very useful information when organizing security levels during the sporting event. For example, they provide us with information on the percentage of capacity reached by zones of the enclosure and by type of tickets (guests, general, VIPS, etc.), peak access hours… With this data we can mobilize a larger number of security staff in certain areas of the event or during certain periods of time.
- Cashless and contactless payments: changing the use of cash for cashless and contactless payments through NFC technology reduces crowds and waiting times when making payments in the facilities (catering, merchandising, etc.).
In addition, the centralization of payments in a single device such as smart wristbands reduces the number of possible thefts or counterfeit money during the event.
The best thing about all this technology is that all the information it collects will be offered to you in real time. With this constant updating of information we get to be aware of all the details that happen during our event. Information that we can share with public security forces.
As you can see, the security of an event requires planning. Risks can appear at any time, however, we can anticipate or try to reduce them as much as possible. Sports and events are fun, let’s invest in their safety!
