TOCA Social Lands in Birmingham: Gensler Designs a Dynamic Football Entertainment Experience at the Bullring
Gensler has collaborated with TOCA Social on their second football entertainment and hospitality offering, bringing an exciting, new attraction to the city of Birmingham.
TOCA Social @Bullring Are you game?
Located in the iconic Bullring in the heart of Birmingham, TOCA Social is a significant development for the city. Following the successful design and delivery of TOCA’s first UK site at The O2 in London, the Birmingham addition builds upon a comprehensive blueprint.
TOCA Social has transformed a former- Debenhams to revitalise a prominent site in the shopping centre. Gensler’s agile prototype was developed and evolved using lessons learned from the leading design, delivery, operation, and user experience at The O2 site. The resulting design creates a pioneering and unique entertainment experience seen for the first time in the Midlands region.
This exciting leisure and hospitality destination is centered around the globally adored phenomena — football – aimed to be enjoyed by all with friends, family, or colleagues, regardless of ability or football interest. The inclusive destination invites visitors to experience the journey of a footballer through the clever play on space typologies found in football stadiums.
Players enter the venue through an immersive, multisensory tunnel, eventually resurfacing straight onto the midfield, where they are immersed in the colour and energy of the game. At the heart of the space lies the Midfield Bar, a spectacular focal point reaching high into the former atrium lightwell. Surrounding the bar are 23 immersive pitches – or boxes – where the games commence using the latest Augmented Reality tech for the ultimate fun experience. Each box has spectator space for an unrivalled social experience at the touchline, with several boxes purposely step-free to make the experience as inclusive as possible.
Seating areas line the bar for diners and players alike, as well as a photobooth and the infamous “early bath.” A stage area also sits in the midfield with framing design language borrowed from stadium architecture. Featuring a large screen for events or sports screenings, it provides a great location to watch a game and incorporates a DJ set-up for later in the evening.
The elevated cooldown bar offers post-game refreshments with extra seating, arcade machines, foosball tables, and a VIP area for exclusive hire. TOCA Social Birmingham’s design abstracts and manipulates linework and colour from sports, using the language of the football field to create a dynamic, play-focused, and experiential space.
The layout is designed to accommodate various events, including in-studio media broadcasts, music video backdrops, corporate meetings, and conferences. Gensler worked carefully with TOCA Social to ensure their brand and prototype remained true to its standards while evolving it, guaranteeing a dynamic solution for their first regional site.
The result is a true demonstration of the concept prototype in action. TOCA Social Birmingham embodies the brand’s vision for offering an immersive entertainment experience to a wide audience and has laid the foundation for the potential roll out of the prototype in other cities around the world.