Sporting Kansas City Selects KC American Sportservice to Provide Concessions and Dining at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park

KANSAS CITY, Kan., May 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Sporting Kansas City today announced it has selected KC American Sportservice – a joint venture of Delaware North Companies Sportservice and American Food & Vending – to provide food and beverage services at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park.

KC American Sportservice will manage all food and beverage operations at the Major League Soccer (MLS) team's new state-of-the-art stadium, including general concessions and premium dining in the venue's 36 suites and five clubs. Sporting KC will open the new stadium June 9 at against rivals Chicago Fire on ESPN2.

"We're thrilled to be in a partnership with industry leaders that have a proven track record," Sporting Kansas City Vice-President of Revenue Andrew Steinberg said. "Fan experience is a source of pride for our Club and a key element to our success. We are confident that KC American Sportservice will provide top-notch food and beverage service to our members and guests at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park."

A division of global hospitality provider Delaware North Companies, Sportservice is one of the leading sports venue food service companies in the world. It operates at more than 50 professional sports and entertainment venues, including Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Soldier Field in Chicago and Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. Delaware North also operates food and beverage services at some of the premier soccer venues in the world outside of the United States, including Wembley and Emirates stadiums in London.

"Sportservice is thrilled to be working with American Food & Vending to bring world-class hospitality, concessions and dining to Sporting Kansas City's incredible new stadium," Sportservice President Rick Abramson said. "We know how important food is to Kansas City, and we are fully committed to serving fans some of the best food in the region."

American Food & Vending is one of the largest independent corporate dining and vending service companies in the United States. In Kansas City alone, American Food & Vending serves more than 30,000 meals a day to some of the community's largest companies.

"As Kansas City's market leader in on-site dining services, we are excited to add the region's newest major attraction to our existing portfolio of the city's best-known corporations and cultural institutions," said Bob Otto, American Food & Vending's senior vice president. "Our deep market knowledge and broad base of customer support make this collaboration perfect for Sporting Kansas City and its thousands of devoted fans."

LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, managed for Sporting Kansas City by Global Spectrum, seats 18,467 for soccer and approximately 25,000 for concerts.

The stadium's Members Club features the first restaurant in MLS to remain open during non-game days. The unique 2,000-person capacity club features long high-top tables, 28 flat-screen televisions, two giant HD projection screens and a DJ booth. The 8,000-square-foot area has large glass garage doors that face the playing field and will be open on game days.

KC American Sportservice is finalizing diverse menus for the Members Club, including for a large buffet and several action stations where food will be prepared and served fresh to guests. In addition, KC American Sportservice will serve fans in the Stadium Club, which has a capacity of 1,000 and will feature a premium buffet themed on a Taste of Kansas City; Field Club, which includes in-seat service for 400; and two suite-level lounges to serve suite guests in a European dining style.

The stadium's eight permanent concession stands will feature a variety of food presented in six different concession themes: Kansas City BBQ, Grill, Pizza, Stadium Fare, Children's and Southern Border. Several portable concession carts will supplement the permanent concessions.

For Sporting Kansas City's new fan experience at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Delaware North brings a strong reputation in the industry for its culinary expertise and innovative concessions concepts. In addition, Sportservice will implement Delaware North's customer service program, GuestPath®, and its environmental management program, GreenPath®.

About American Food & Vending

A third-generation family-owned company, American Food & Vending has become the on-site dining and vending industry's fastest-growing and leading company, serving clients in over thirty-five U.S. cities, including many Fortune 500 companies, educational and cultural institutions, and sports venues. With a unique emphasis on culinary expertise, American has revolutionized the notion of "institutional feeding" to create retail-quality gourmet cuisine for its clients. American's chefs have won many awards and culinary competitions on the local, regional, and national levels. For additional information, please visit www.afvusa.com.

About Delaware North Companies Sportservice

Delaware North Companies Sportservice is one of the nation's leading food, beverage and retail management companies, providing concessions, gourmet catering and fine dining operations at more than 50 professional sporting venues, entertainment complexes and convention centers across the United States and Canada. Sportservice has served an impressive collection of sporting events and clients, including the World Series, the National Hockey League and Major League Baseball's All-Star Games, Stanley Cup Championships and the Olympic Games. For more than 90 years, Sportservice has demonstrated that it knows what it takes to effectively develop, operate and manage multi-faceted kitchens, restaurants, suites, fine dining and retail facilities in order to meet the changing demands of today's fans. From introducing new healthy, organic food selections and creative cuisine for twists on the traditional fare, Sportservice continues to innovate and enhance the fan experience. For more information, visit www.DelawareNorth.com.

About Sporting Kansas City

Sporting Kansas City is proud to be the only professional sports organization in Kansas City with local ownership. The team's parent organization, Sporting Club, consists of the following five entrepreneurs in the Kansas City business community: Neal Patterson, chairman of the board, chief executive officer and co-founder of Cerner Corporation; Cliff Illig, vice chairman and co-founder of Cerner Corporation; Robb Heineman, chief executive officer of Sporting Club; Greg Maday, chairman and chief executive officer of SpecChem, LLC and co-founder of Rock Island Capital, LLC; and Pat Curran, founder and principal of C3 Capital, LLC. Sporting Kansas City is currently in its 16th season as a charter member of Major League Soccer and will open state-of-the-art LIVESTRONG Sporting Park on June 9th.

Please note: When discussing our team, please refer to us as Sporting Kansas City or Sporting KC. Single-game tickets are now on sale for the all MLS home matches during the 2011 season at state-of-the-art LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, opening on June 9th. Visit TicketMaster.com or call 888-4KC-GOAL to reserve seats. 

www.SportingKC.com

SOURCE Delaware North Companies