NEW YORK -- Quinn, Jack and Luke Hughes, Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist, and NHL legend Jaromir Jagr will be among the elite sports athletes and celebrities on hand for Fanatics Fest NYC at Javits Center from June 20-22.
The inaugural event, which took place here in August 2024, was a concept conceived, developed and operated by Fanatics, the global sports distribution giant and NHL partner, that was a sports fans dream.
"I could lie and say it was exactly what we envisioned, but we were putting something truly new and original into the world and when you do that, you never quite know how it's going to react when it's out in the world," said Lance Fensterman, the chief executive officer of Fanatics Events. "So, it actually vastly exceeded our expectations. We had way more people and they were way more excited. The leagues and the brands showed up in this amazing way. So, we had high hopes, reasonable expectations and the reality, really delivered above and beyond what we were going for, so we were pretty ecstatic."
Major sports leagues, hands-on activations, autographs and picture sessions, panel discussions with athletes and card retailers made for an unforgettable three days.
This year, Fanatics has upped the ante.
"We have several new leagues that will be there," Fensterman said. "English Premier League, UEFA. Nike is coming in a huge way. DICK'S Sporting Goods will be there. We've also got three new stages so that we will have more podcasts that'll be live. We'll have new panels and content. We have a ton of new merchandise, and exclusives that we’re going to be dropping with great brands, so it's stuff that you can only get at the show."
New this year is the Fanatics Games, which will pit 50 lucky fans against 50 athletes and celebrities in eight events across all sports including hockey, baseball, basketball, football, wrestling, soccer, golf and UFC. Eash person's six-best scores among the eight events will count, with the winner getting $1 million cash, second place getting a Ferrari 812 GTS, and third place getting a LeBron James graded rookie card, which a recent sale of the same card sold for $250,000.
It won't be easy outscoring athletes like Tom Brady, Jayden Daniels, Rob Gronkowski, Kevin Durant and Alex Rodriguez also competing, but that's what makes it intriguing.
"What if we did a competition with the greatest athletes, a bunch of streamers and fans all competing against each other?" Fensterman said. "One hundred participants, eight different brands are participants, a scoring system and judges. It really came out of a crazy idea from Michael that we then worked together to make a reality.
"We've been getting videos from people saying, 'I'm a serious athlete' to, 'I'm a mom, I have the hardest job in the world,’ to, 'I just think I can do it, and I want to win,' and it's been awesome."
Last year, one lucky fan who was considered to be the best dressed according to Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin won tickets to the biggest sporting events of the past year, including the Super Bowl, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final, World Series, WrestleMania, MLS championship and more.
"We are asking every fan to dress up again and we will be giving out different prizes," Fensterman said. "So, I think we have a bunch of cool little surprise and delight that will make fans feel cool.
“Also, you're just going to see so many athletes and entertainers, just wandering around the show doing different activities. If you're there, you're really going to feel like you're a part of it all."
Among the other athletes who will be on hand at Fanatics Fest are James, Peyton and Eli Manning, Mike Piazza, Derek Jeter and John Cena, and celebrities including Kevin Costner, Tiffany Haddish and DJ Khaled.
Tickets can be purchased here.
Last year's event was a resounding success, but this one has even greater expectations.
"We were pleased with the outcome, but we know we can do so much more, so much better," Fensterman said. "And in those new things that we wanted to do was the Fanatics Games, and a couple other things as well. So, we went about just wanting to build on a great launch and make it even bigger, make it even better, make it even more special."
