Whangārei’s Northland Events Centre/Semenoff Stadium - which has hosted many events, including the Women’s Rugby World Cup - has been named the best venue in the country at the New Zealand Events Association’s annual Event Awards.
Whangārei’s Northland Events Centre/Semenoff Stadium - which has hosted many events, including the Women’s Rugby World Cup - has been named the best venue in the country at the New Zealand Events Association’s annual Event Awards.
When you think about the best venues in the country, places such as Auckland’s Eden Park, Wellington’s Sky Stadium or Dunedin’s Forsyth Barr Stadium may spring straight to mind.
But no, the best venue in the country - as judged by the New Zealand Events Association (NZEA) - is none other than Whangārei’s Northland Events Centre/Semenoff Stadium.
The events centre was given the honour at the association’s annual Event Awards on Thursday night, and the centre’s successful hosting of the Women’s Rugby World Cup was partly behind the win.
The events centre/stadium hosts a wide range of events, from corporate gatherings, fireworks displays, rugby, football and league internationals to concerts, the Fritter Festival and other festivals.
Northland Events Centre Trust general manager Carina de Graaf was at the awards ceremony in Christchurch and admitted she didn’t think the events centre had a big chance, given two of the other finalists were Eden Park and Spark Arena.
Events like the Fritter Festival have seen Whangārei’s Northland Events Centre/Semenoff Stadium named the best venue in the country.
“I’m just so rapt for the Northland community, who have supported the events centre and turned up to the events we host ... this is a big win for Northland.”
She said it would be great marketing tool to be able to say it’s the best venue in the country.
“The likes of Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift, those big events, we’d like to get them here. We want it so people don’t have to go to Auckland to see a big event and have to pay for hotels, fuel and food.
“We want them to be able to see them in Whangārei - why can’t it be here, in the best venue in the country? I think we can make it happen.”
NZEA general manager Elaine Linnell said the Northland Events Centre winning the award would be encouraging for smaller entrants because it proves you don’t have to be big to stand out.
“When Northland Events Centre hosted 11 out of 12 international teams at the 2021 Rugby World Cup, ticket sales exceeded all expectations. It could have been a victim of its own success, but the team showed exceptional leadership and innovation in seamlessly managing more than 150,000 attendees when only 87,000 were predicted to attend.”
“This sudden surge in ticket sales presented operational difficulties, including the need to arrange additional food vendors, bars, contractors, parking, traffic management, staffing, beverages, health and safety compliance and communication within a short timeframe. Despite being a small team, the venue demonstrated exceptional problem-solving abilities and resourcefulness when faced with larger crowds.”
Further to this, the Rugby World Cup 2021 won Best Major or Mega Event 2023 and Best Sports Event 2023.
