TOCA Social’s Global Success Proves Football Culture is a Worthy Investment

Experienced operators in hospitality, leisure, and real estate have spent the last several years watching the rise of social entertainment’s undeniable success. These active, often competitive, group experiences drive dwell time, repeat visitation, and F&B performance that passive formats cannot match.

Noticeably absent was representation for the world’s most popular sport until TOCA Social took to the pitch. TOCA Social is the world’s only interactive football and dining experience.

Despite being a global phenomenon, no concept had been built around football with the level of experience, technology, and premium hospitality that such a voluminous, yet varied, audience deserves.

Combining proprietary interactive football technology with premium food and beverage offerings, TOCA Social created structured group experiences that bring people back week after week.

“TOCA Social democratizes participation in the world’s largest sport,” says Alex Harman, president of the soccer-centric social and entertainment venue concept that launched in 2021.

“On a human level, people have so much in common when playing football which is why we’ve created an accessible experience that unites fans with their friends and families.”

TOCA Social currently operates locations across Europe, North America, and Latin America, but no matter where the venue is geographically, patrons receive the same unrivaled experience found nowhere else on the planet.

“When you step into a TOCA Social box, you could be playing anywhere in the world.”

TOCA Social is now entering selective conversations with experienced operators in hospitality, leisure, and real estate across Latin America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Australasia — groups who want to be first in their market and can evaluate the opportunity using proven, strong economics.

Soccer Scores
Three billion fervent fans and casual viewers alike watched the 2022 FIFA World Cup; some of whom did so from TOCA Social’s debut concept venue at The O2 in London. But opening a football-focused entertainment center in one of the United Kingdom’s largest football communities wasn’t a sure bet.

“We had high conviction that it would be a success,” Harman says. “But until you open the doors, you never truly know whether the idea and execution are going to work or if people are going to give up their precious free time and hard-earned money.”

TOCA Social takes aim at markets that have a deep, generational relationship with the game. Although this strong cultural foundation is present throughout the world, Harman highlights an often-overlooked reality: there are fans on every continent who’ve never kicked a soccer ball.

The risk wasn’t whether or not the tried and true consumer behavior of football fans would translate into a new facility. Harman and his team knew they were offering the only concept built around a sport that resonates across the global market.

The concern was that traditional barriers to physically playing football exist in both big cities and small barrios. Some locations lack adequate space for a pitch while others have audiences who don’t believe they possess the skill or fitness level required to play. Simply providing an accessible opportunity to play doesn’t guarantee attendance.

“We have always been conscious that, although soccer is a global sport, the way people engage in soccer differs around the world,” says Harman. “That influenced a lot of our user testing. We didn’t want to build a British product or an American product; we wanted something that’s designed to travel well.”

TOCA Social’s opening at The O2 proved to be a success and Harman’s relief quickly ushered in the next logical question: How can TOCA Social authentically expand?

International Goals
TOCA Social opened two additional locations in England: one at Westfield White City in London, and one in Birmingham’s Bullring. With two-time U.S. Men’s National Team player Eddie Lewis as a TOCA founder, and U.S. Women’s National Team Champion Abby Wambach sitting on TOCA Social’s board of directors, it was only a matter of time until the company entered the American market.

Enhancing the brand’s success across the U.K. is one goal; taking the idea across the pond is another challenge entirely.

“Alex opened up an office in Dallas to conduct two years of market research,” says Yoshi Maruyama, CEO of TOCA Football, parent company of TOCA Social. “It’s considered the sports capital of the United States and FC Dallas has a great fan base, so we performed plenty of consumer testing and made adjustments to appeal to the local market.”

The TOCA Social team acknowledged that the American audience engages with a sport primarily through live broadcasts which is why they built a miniature stadium within TOCA Social Dallas specifically for viewing games.

Though they anticipated that the Texas sports audience would embrace this concept, the Dallas TOCA Social location also had an unexpected impact on their bottom line: the visitation and average spend per guest was exponentially greater in Texas than its United Kingdom counterparts. Harman believes part of that success is attributed to the F&B offerings.

“The common thread in our menus is essentially a modern creative Americana cuisine, but the interpretation of specific dishes changes depending on the location,” Harman says. “We serve upscale creative fare at reasonable price points which we believe encourages those who aren’t soccer fans to visit and engage with our other activities like the arcade and photobooth.”

TOCA Social has also opened locations in Paris, Guatemala City, and Monterrey, Mexico. Maryuama is confident that the concept can succeed in countless football markets around the globe.

“Our success in London and Dallas proves that the economics of investing in the football audience works,” Maryuama says. “We know what makes a TOCA Social venue special and although our standards remain the same, the cost of delivering those standards can fluctuate depending on the market.”

Harman agrees that TOCA Social will always prioritize a high-caliber experience for guests and already has contingency plans for markets that have smaller investment capabilities.

“We’re developing different models for smaller format venues as a lower investment, yet scalable growth option,” Harman says. “Our flagship locations in the U.S. and U.K. are incredibly impressive, but we also recognize that truly rolling this concept out globally requires variability in format size.”

Game Play for All
Football is a universal sport that is accessible to every community, culture, and country, which is why TOCA Social was founded with the belief that its venues should be just as inclusive.

“From day one a critical element of TOCA Social was designing an experience for everyone,” Harman says. “And we really mean everybody: even if you have severe physical limitations, you’re going to enjoy playing at TOCA Social as long as you can vaguely propel a ball forward.”

Inclusivity across the TOCA Social venue is a point of pride for Harman. He highlights the inherent accessibility in the games which includes adjusting the physical speed of receiving and delivering the ball to a player based on the individual player’s abilities. All games feature a selection of difficulty ranges so that beginners and advanced players can not only enjoy themselves, but also leverage a digital handicap system. This allows players of different skill levels to compete against each other.

“The best players will win most of the time,” Harman admits, “but complete beginners can certainly still win.”

The inclusivity isn’t limited to solely soccer fans. This all-ages venue encourages families to stay and play no matter what stage of life they’re in. Each venue is spacious enough to accommodate wheelchairs and strollers, while restrooms have amenities like baby changing stations. Multigenerational groups can engage in the same experience limited only to their interest, not their age, ability, or preferred activity level.

“We’ve had professional soccer players who are amputees come and play in a TOCA Social box,” Harman explains. “The experience was built with accessibility in mind and it’s truly the only place where absolutely anyone can play and watch soccer simultaneously.”

Prospective partners are invited to connect ahead of IAAPA Expo and other upcoming global industry events. Contact Lesley Hawks to learn more about TOCA Social’s exciting future: [email protected] | +1 562-760-1611
 

The article above is sponsored by TOCA Social. The content presented does not imply endorsement by IAAPA, IAAPA.org, IAAPA News Daily, or Funworld magazine. The information contained should not be construed as a formal recommendation for products and services or instructional guidance provided by IAAPA.