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As of March 12, webinar provider Online Seminar opens Studio Johan Cruijff ArenA, a studio in the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam. The advantage: no more assembly and disassembly, and thus lower start-up costs. It is a spacious studio, which also offers the possibility of recording a promotional video in the stadium.

Since autumn of 2020 Online Seminar and the Johan Cruijff ArenA are partners. The Amsterdam venue, centrally located in the country, and Online Seminar offer clients the possibility to host virtual and hybrid events in different rooms of the stadium. Guests can make use of all the ArenA’s facilities, such as the catering provided by Maison van den Boer and the ample parking space.

Space and stability

‘The need arose to build an extra permanent studio’, says CEO of Online Seminar Marthijn Pieters. ‘We were spending a lot of time setting up and dismantling, because the studio spaces were in great demand. We have a permanent studio at our headquarters in Amsterdam, but it is booked up from morning to night and has no room for the public. A large, permanent studio in Amsterdam gives us extra space and stability, which is nice for our clients and for us.’

Straight to the grandstand

In the new studio in the ArenA, various set-ups can be created. Think of a talk show table and a counter. Under normal circumstances, there is room for about thirty people. Pieters: ‘The nice thing is: from the studio you can go straight to the stadium’s stands. Many clients record a promo video for the webinar there.’ In the studio Online Seminar always has a webinar engineer present for the technique and a host to guide the speakers. The Johan Cruijff ArenA provides a regular contact person and a steward to show guests around.

Royal Lodge

The studio can also be used for other video purposes, Pieters says. ‘We recently had many clients recording videos for medical education in the ArenA. They regularly use our e-learning platform LPX, which makes for a handy combination.’ In addition to the permanent studio, clients can also continue to make use of other spaces in the ArenA. Like the impressive Koninklijke Logo with the football field in the background. Or an even larger space, such as the new ‘House of Legends’. Here, there is enough room for an audience to organize a hybrid event. The permanent studio is available at least until the summer. event te organiseren. De vaste studio is in elk geval tot de zomer beschikbaar.

Going Hybrid

‘Normally we believe in the adagium: the more people, the better’, says Hilda Hofkamp, sales manager business events at the Johan Cruijff ArenA. ‘But these are not normal times and therefore our cooperation with Online Seminar is a very nice outcome. We have the spaces, they have the platform. A permanent studio is nice, because then we don’t have to spend time on the set-up. That is financially more attractive for customers.’ Hofkamp expects that webinars will not disappear from the ArenA. ‘When everything returns to normal, I think we will still have many hybrid events. There will always be people who can’t attend, but still want to watch.’