“Energy is everything for us” - Inside the ‘most expensive’ hospitality offering at Murrayfield and beyond
Hospitality and sport have gone hand in hand for years, but as more and more people seek out experiential dining, the offering has grown from corporate to unique - and increasingly pricey - events. Rosalind Erskine went inside the £1500 per person Ignite tent at Murrayfield, and found a party atmosphere and some surprising guests.
When the Six Nations fixtures were announced last year, I could never have imagined that I’d spend the day of Scotland vs England at Murrayfield having a three course lunch with Owen Farrell, Kelly Brown, Lawrence Dallaglio, and Tom Stoltman, the current UK strongman. But this is exactly where I found myself on Valentine’s day, ahead of the much anticipated match between these age old rivals.
This is what Ignite Experiences offer; a welcome drink, three course meal, pre-match chat with current and former players, entertainment, a ticket to the game then two hours post-match chat and entertainment. Yours for £15000 per person - the most expensive offering at Murrayfield as well as Wembley and beyond. The team also offers seasonal parties, corporate retreats and team building days.
The brainchild of Scot Jamie McKinnon and business partner Robert Rankine, the business came about due to Mr McKinnon’s past experience in work and as an ex-rugby player as well as how he wanted to build something different.
He explained: “I began my career within traditional sports hospitality and saw how commercially strong the model could be - but often predictable. Larger rooms, more covers, more packages.
“The Players’ Lounge at Scottish Gas Murrayfield was the starting point - and as a Scot, building something that raised the standard of live events there mattered personally. But the ambition was always bigger than one venue.
“We wanted curated, talent-led environments where the chemistry in the room mattered as much as the fixture itself. Luxury is shifting from ownership to access. Ignite was built around that shift.”
The business partners launched Ignite three years ago, and have seen sellout success for the Player’s Lounge hospitality offering. Mr McKinnon’s connections in hospitality and rugby allow access to the ex and current players, including wunderkind Finn Russell who is an ambassador for the business.
As we’re seeing more and more fine dining being incorporated into hospitality in sport, Mr McKinnon said that the food and drinks here are: “the foundation and not the headline. They need to be excellent, but they shouldn’t overpower the room,” he said. The packages at Murrayfield are all catered by the same company and can be “hit and miss” said Mr McKinnon, who hopes to partner with a champagne brand to offer even more luxury in the Ignite packages. It’s worth noting that the food on the day was very good, and included dishes with local ingredients such as Borders beef.
There’s no getting away from the ticket price, but it’s not putting people off. Of the rise in people paying more for an experience, he said: “There’s a structural shift underway. Luxury used to be defined by ownership. Increasingly it’s defined by access - access to rooms not everyone can walk into, access to atmosphere, access to conversation. People aren’t just buying tickets. They’re investing in moments that become stories.”
Scotland vs England game at Murrayfield is always going to be a hot ticket, but Mr McKinnon said that people are buying in to so much more now and, with Ignite, giving back as each game day raises money for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation via a raffle. He said: “Energy is everything for us. The Players’ Lounge isn’t traditional hospitality - it’s curated, it’s intimate and it’s built around the people in the room as much as the game itself.
“The Calcutta Cup is a perfect platform to show that Ignite is now a live experiences brand across racing, cricket, football, music and F1 - always invite-led, always relationship-driven.
“Whether Scotland wins or loses is separate from the Players’ Lounge experience. The room has to feel electric regardless of the scoreline - that’s our responsibility.”
He also explained how and why the team chose to keep the experience as intimate as possible, with just over 30 tables available to buy in the Murrayfield tent.
He said: “We curate the guest mix carefully. We anchor the space with recognisable talent. We design the rhythm of the day - anticipation, lift, momentum. We could fill these rooms multiple times over. We choose not to. That restraint protects intimacy and chemistry. It’s about the right people in the room, not the most people.”
As for what else is on the cards at Ignite, Mr McKinnon is keen to carry on with "intimacy with scale,” saying: “The Players’ Lounge at Murrayfield made our name, but it’s now part of a wider portfolio.
“We operate across Six Nations rugby, Cheltenham, The Oval, Formula 1, Premier League football and major stadium music tours. The philosophy doesn’t change.
“Whether it’s rugby in Edinburgh, racing in Gloucestershire, cricket in London or global sport and music, the focus remains the same - intimacy within scale.”
After a thrilling game, in which Scotland were victorious, the party atmosphere in the Ignite Player’s Lounge tent was enough to make even Owen Farrell smile. Add in a fun Q&A with Finn Russell and Dave Cherry and there was no champagne needed. This was one day at Murrayfield that’ll be hard to forget.
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