Enhancing Spectator Experience: Temporary Seating at HOYS

Since 1949, HOYS has hosted numerous showing classes, including the prestigious titles of Supreme Horse of the Year and Supreme Pony of the Year.

The show is held in October each year at the NEC in Birmingham. 50 acres of the exhibition centre are transformed into an incredible venue for the event, with multiple arenas and stabling for 1,600 horses and ponies. Around 60,000 spectators attend across the five days, making visitor experience crucial to the events’ success.

Highest-level competition riders travel from both the UK and internationally to compete at the event and guests can experience outstanding displays, including scurry driving and mounted games. The show features end-of-season national championships for showing and showjumping competitors, as well as international showjumping.

GL events UK has a long-standing partnership with the event organisers and has been delivering specialised temporary seating for the Horse of the Year Show since 2018.
Over the years, we’ve refined seating layouts to meet the show’s evolving needs, leveraging our extensive experience at the NEC. In 2024, we implemented the second iteration of a tailored seating layout for the TopSpec Arena, where our team installed 900 seats across four grandstands.  The design provided premium viewing for attendees, ensuring an optimal balance between spectator comfort and functional venue arrangements.

Our team need to install the seating during a small window of time whilst also working alongside other contractors, and so detailed planning and constant communication between all parties is required to ensure that the event organisers can have everything prepared in time. With the grandstand seating being installed in just one day there was minimal disruption to other elements of infrastructure that had to be in place before the competition began.
By ensuring a high-quality, timely installation, we played a key role in enhancing the event experience for both spectators and participants.