SEAT

Can you believe SEAT 2026 was two weeks ago?

Since then have you...
- Reached out to a new friend from a discussion at SEAT City
- Placed your custom SEAT trading card in a prime desk position
- Raved about Charlotte to your family and friends
- Reviewed your notes from that session, which really hit home
- Watched the World Cup, but you're missing the karaoke support act
- Followed up to check the case study or tech you learned about
- Started following a team just to see their tech/digital/data/cx strategy in action
- Driven a little too fast after your NASCAR sim experience
- Posted on LinkedIn or Facebook or Insta about your experience
- Explained to your boss you're planning to attend SEAT 2027

We know some of you would answer YES to every one of these, and that is what makes SEAT so special.

As I sit back and reflect on the past few days, one thing keeps coming to mind:

Thank you.

SEAT has never been just a conference. It’s a gathering place.

Every year, we bring together people who believe that technology, innovation, and live experiences can improve sports and entertainment. But what has always made this community special isn’t the technology – it’s the people. It’s the willingness to share ideas openly, celebrate each other’s successes, learn from failures, and leave as friends.

Charlotte reminded me why I fell in love with this community years ago. From our incredible opening evening at Bank of America Stadium, to the unforgettable night surrounded by racing history at the NASCAR Hall of Fame, to closing together at the Spectrum Center, every venue reminded us that the places we work are ultimately about bringing people together.

A heartfelt thank you to our host organizations - Tepper Sports & Entertainment, North Carolina Motorsports Association, the Charlotte Hornets, and the Charlotte Knights. Your hospitality, generosity, and willingness to open your homes to our community made this year’s experience truly special.

To our Steering Committee: thank you for the hours you invested over the past several months. You challenged ideas, debated topics, reviewed submissions, and remained intentional about every session we selected.

To every speaker who stood on our stages and shared your knowledge so openly, thank you. Fernando Perez and George Hanna, you kicked off SEAT 2026 with an amazing opening session. A special thank you to David Meerman Scott and Les Ottolenghi for inspiring us to think differently, challenge assumptions, and continue pushing our industry forward.

To our sponsors and partners: thank you for believing in what SEAT represents. Your support allows this community to exist. More importantly, thank you for showing up as collaborators, educators, and friends—not just sponsors and exhibitors. The relationships built on the show floor are every bit as valuable as those built in our sessions.

And finally, thank you to every attendee. Whether this was your first SEAT or your fifteenth, thank you for asking thoughtful questions, sharing your experiences, welcoming new faces, and making this community what it is. Every conversation over coffee, every hallway discussion, every dinner, every handshake, and every new friendship adds another chapter to the story of SEAT.

This community has always belonged to all of us. My role is simply to help create the space where these conversations can happen.

Thank you for trusting me and our team to bring everyone together once again.

I hope you left Charlotte with new ideas, new friendships, renewed inspiration, and a reminder that none of us has to solve these challenges alone.

Thank you for making SEAT 2026 Charlotte unforgettable.

With gratitude,

Josh Barney

https://seatconference.com/seat-2026-thank-you/

Josh Barney kicks off

Great to see so many friends returning and new friends attending SEAT for the first time.

Meet the Interns

Grace Jeffer, Brielle LoPresti, Gee Smith, Maya Kamen, Paige Coble, Sam Hales, Luther Hales, Seth Woodson & Tyson Quarker

Please connect with them and seek them out if you have a question in Charlotte

Running a lean front office means your marketing, sponsorship, and CRM teams cannot operate in silos. Integration is the competitive edge.

Sean Callanan of Sports Geek and Michael Cunningham of the Philadelphia Phillies join SEAT 2026 to share how matrix teams and smart technology integration are changing what is possible.

Digital, Sponsorship and Ticketing | Tuesday, June 30 | Charlotte, NC

Full agenda at seatconference.com

The Super Bowl generates sponsorship value that goes way beyond TV impressions -- but most host venues aren't fully capturing it.

Christina Coy and Rachel Sessa of Trajektory join SEAT 2026 to show what the data actually looks like: how in-venue assets outperform during marquee events, how fan behavior shifts, and how to use that story to set partner expectations and structure stronger deals.

Data & Business Intelligence | Tuesday, June 30 | Charlotte, NC

Full agenda at seatconference.com

Most venues can't start from zero. They have to modernise what exists.

Bryan Bedford of Cisco, David Jones of AEG, and TJ Carney of Tepper join SEAT 2026 to share how recent stadium renovation and refresh projects have integrated new technology stacks into existing builds -- future-proofing operations and improving the fan experience without a blank canvas.

Venue Technology & Security | Tuesday, June 30 | Charlotte, NC

Full agenda at seatconference.com

What better way to close out Monday at SEAT 2026 than a deep dive into the city we're in?

Sean Callanan moderates a panel with Jonathan Norman of Tepper Sports, Chad Willis of the NC Motorsports Association, and Ronnie Bryant of the Charlotte Hornets covering the technology, partnerships, and fan experience stories that make North Carolina one of the most compelling sports markets going.

General Session | Monday, June 29 | Charlotte, NC

Full agenda at seatconference.com