“Aim for a Consistent Level of Delivery Across Stadiums”

For major tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup stadiums must make numerous adjustments and provide a consistent look, quality, and comfort throughout all host venues. Tiago Paes, FIFA’s Head of Venue Management, explains what is necessary.

Tiago Paes
Tiago Paes Image: FIFA
stadiaworld: Can you describe your main responsibilities as FIFA’s Head of Venue Management? What does a typical week look like for you?
Paes: Venue Management oversees the planning and operations of FIFA World Cup stadiums. During the planning phase, the objective is to understand the different stadium layouts and characteristics and adapt them to FIFA’s requirements. This includes transforming these requirements into venue‑specific implementation plans, including resources, budgets, and timelines.

We work in very close collaboration with all other departments (functional areas) and act as an integrator to ensure that spaces are correctly allocated and that client flows are well designed. The process is extensive and requires multiple site visits, virtual meetings, map revisions, and the development of operational policies and procedures. We then develop, test, implement, and deliver venue operating plans as part of the overall integrated planning roadmap.

During the tournament, we ensure ...