Tim Hortons Field

Introduction

Case Study

Tim Hortons Field is the home of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL (Canadian Football League), the Forge FC or the CPL (Canadian Premier League), and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.

The Ask

The 2014 rebuild of Tim Hortons Field initially presented The Look Company the opportunity to refresh and revitalize the home of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Additionally in 2018, the Canadian Football League (CFL) was looking for a solution to rebrand the club level of the stadium as the new location for the Canadian Football Hall of Fame (CFHOF). Soon after, when the Forge FC joined the Tiger-Cats at Tim Hortons Field in 2019, the operations crew was looking for a system that allowed them to do a full stadium change out of team-branded materials from the TiCats to Forge FC.

The Solution

Working closely with business and football operations, The Look Company developed the visuals and design application for the entire stadium, including the locker room and training facilities. Our project management team implemented the production and installation of every branded element at Tim Hortons Field.

Branding of Tim Hortons Field

2014-Present

The branding of Tim Hortons Field began with the request for an overall revitalization of the team’s graphics for the new stadium in 2014. Building on the striking Tiger-Cats brand, The Look Company set out to create an immersive environment worthy of the TiCats’ devoted fan base. To facilitate the requirement for quick and easy updates, custom extrusions allowed for flexibility so that the team could swap out fabric prints with the change of corporate sponsors in specialty areas.

The field of play graphics required proprietary extrusions installed on the walls to accommodate the highly impactful graphic prints on 13oz vinyl. These extrusions granted the ability to change out designs as required for sponsor changeover. The coveted broadcast visible areas in the north and south endzones were also outfitted with custom printed 13oz vinyl, along with the Coors Light Patio located at the north endzone.

Within the stadium concourses, exterior extrusions with grip and 13oz printed vinyl were installed. These areas were pivotal in showcasing the current sponsors. Similar to the field of play, easy change out allows for sponsor or brand updates at any time. The same extrusion was used along the fascia to celebrate the Wall of Honour members. This is updated as new players are inducted into this prestigious group.

Behind The Scenes...

Behind the scenes, in the operations areas, corporate suites, locker room, and training facilities, 17mm wall-mounted frames, and lightboxes with custom printed SEG fabric were used to fashion the areas with high-resolution images. The SEG fabric prints are easily changed out and storable if needed for reuse. Besides the lightboxes and frames, custom pin mounted letters, plaques, and logos were used for area identification and unique branding detail.

To capitalize on merchandise sales, focusing on the retail stores and kiosks within the stadium helped to encourage fan support and purchases. The retail store required exterior extrusions and grip with 13oz vinyl signage identifying the main entrance to the store. Custom lightboxes, display end caps, and custom extrusions within the interior of the space were added to appeal to fans and drive sales of team apparel and other fan collectibles. Retail kiosks located at the east and west sides of the stadium included 17mm frames and printed polystretch fabric, engaging fans to make spontaneous point-of-sale purchases to support their teams with branded activewear or exclusive team merchandise.

Lounge Facelifts

The custom sponsored area known as the Twisted Tea Goal Line Lounge was designed, engineered and installed to bring awareness to one of the team’s corporate partners. This section of the stadium was completed with a custom fabricated metal structure supported by a base secured onto the concrete deck. On this frame, PSV (pressure sensitive vinyl) printed with the Twisted Tea branding was installed to create a unique environment for fans to enjoy.

The team wanted to create an area to celebrate a sponsor alongside some of their players so TLC provided graphic elements for the design of the Tim Hortons Museum Level of the stadium. Depicting the history of Tim Hortons, the area required custom aluminum frames to be installed around column beams. These frames were outfitted with digitally printed Dibond portraying TiCats players. As a tribute to Tiger-Cat greats, Angelo Mosca and Bernie Faloney, The Look Company used 40’ flag poles with digitally printed Dibond at the base to display their retired jerseys.

In 2016, the Alumni Lounge got a facelift with a custom bar and buffet. The Look Company contributed to the overall branding of the area by outfitting a suspended frame with an SEG fabric print above the bar. Along the walls in the lounge, 17mm frames, and SEG polystretch fabric prints as well as custom acrylic plaques were hung to pay tribute to alumni members.

Another update in 2016 included the branding of the Coors Light Banquet Bar. The unique design of this space required The Look Company to design a custom showcase for glass mugs that includes digitally printed Dibond. Surrounding the display, exterior extrusion frames were mounted along the walls for 13oz vinyl prints. Rail graphics of digitally printed Dibond images were added to complete the look.

Canadian Football Hall Of Fame

2018

Originally only in the lobby of the Gate 3 Premium Entrance, The Canadian Football Hall of Fame expanded in 2018 in a completely refurbished space. Working with one of our partners, the complete redesign and rebranding of the club level was executed. The walls were decorated with 17mm frames and SEG polystretch fabric and lightboxes featuring SEG premium Luxx fabric prints depicting historic moments and memorabilia.

Forge FC Field Of Play Coverups

2019

In 2019, Tim Hortons Field was faced with a new challenge—how to rebrand the stadium to accommodate an additional team playing on the same field. The Forge FC of the Canadian Premier League (CPL), along with the TiCats, would call Tim Hortons Field home.

In close collaboration with the operations team, The Look Company created a system to change out the graphics of the stadium to efficiently switch from football to soccer.

Using custom polywoven with blockout fabric prints, the solution utilized the existing extrusions on the field of play. Fabric prints are installed over the vinyl and zip-tied off for Forge FC games and then removed and stored on transportable rollers. Because the multi-use stadium capacity is 28,218 for TiCats games, custom printed 13oz vinyl mesh seat covers were created for specific sections of the stadium for a more intimate home game setting for the Forge FC.

When I refer to our relationship with [The Look Company], I explain that they are a partner of our organization. They were involved with every level of the creative process and the scale of what we accomplish as a team would not have been possible without the cohesion between the Tiger-Cats and The Look Company

— Matt Afinec, President & COO, Hamilton Tiger-Cats Football Club and Forge FC

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