FanFair

Client: Guinness

FanFair is an inclusive fan experience created by Guinness in partnership with Catapult, designed to transform how visually impaired fans experience live rugby. While participation and visibility of disabled athletes has grown significantly, inclusion for disabled fans, particularly those with visual impairments, has lagged behind. In Ireland, only 7% of accessible rugby tickets are applied for by visually impaired fans, highlighting a deep-rooted exclusion from the communal joy of live sport.

Guided by Guinness’s Never Settle DEI programme, Catapult identified this gap through extensive research into fandom and accessibility. Working with Irish startup Field of Vision, Voice of Vision Impairment, the IRFU and Six Nations Rugby, FanFair introduced rugby’s first bespoke haptic language, translating live match action into real-time tactile feedback. For the first time, visually impaired fans could independently follow play, feel key moments, and fully participate in the shared emotional experience of the stadium. FanFair debuted at Ireland’s two home Six Nations matches in 2025, inviting 30 visually impaired fans to experience the games in a radically new way. The initiative delivered profound human impact, restoring confidence, independence and belonging for fans who had long felt excluded. Beyond the stadium, FanFair sparked a wider cultural conversation around accessibility in sport, reaching nearly one million viewers online and generating thousands of positive public responses. FanFair demonstrates how purposeful creativity can drive meaningful, lasting change. It is not just an experience for good, but a blueprint for a more inclusive future of live sport.