Case study
Bringing the FIA family together in Macao
Craig Edmondson, chief commercial officer at the FIA, the global governing body for motor sport and mobility, offers an event case study
he FIA recently
T welcomed 400 delegates from 149 countries to its annual conference at the Macao Galaxy International Convention Center.
The conference, which ran 23-25 June, 2026 was an opportunity to bring together all FIA member organisations and represented a second year returning to Macao, with a third edition booked in next year.
So, what were the event objectives?“ One of our focuses was setting the strategy for the future, but just as important it’ s about bringing together our people. We wanted to build those business relationships. We wanted to make those social connections. And we wanted to do more than the meetings themselves. We wanted to really bring our family together,” said chief commercial officer at the FIA, Craig Edmondson.
What were the legacy outcomes from the event?“ In terms of legacy, the conference is the place where we bring together all of our members. It’ s how we determine the future for our organisation,” said Edmondon, noting that for the members, in terms of strategy and focus, it was an opportunity to determine what the priorities are.
“ All of that you see in our daily work, and so whether that’ s Formula One or international karting, the decisions that are made in this environment are the ones that carry through,” he added.“ Equally, we wanted to make sure that we were part of the community in Macao.”
And he emphaised that one of the events during the conference week was focused on the future – the next generation of talent coming through. That event hosted 100 students who were able to discuss career opportunities in both motor sport and mobility, both multi-billiondollar industries.
Why did FIA choose Macao as the destination? Edmondson said it was simple:“ Everything works, and the people are so welcoming. When it comes to the travel and the logistics, it’ s really well connected. We are a global organisation and all of our members were able to fly in and to get transfers across to the venue. The hotel, the meeting rooms, they’ re all in the same place. The meeting room set-up couldn’ t be better.”
FIA was able to host a number of flexible events at the venue and Edmondson said although there were some very formal meetings – the General Assembly, the EGA, equally, there were breakout rooms and plenty of networking opportunities.
There is a really strong motor sport heritage in Macao and Edmondson stressed that being able to bring FIAmembers there outside of a motor sport activity was“ compelling”.“ There’ s so much to do in the city. It’ s so vibrant. There is a compelling culture, and great opportunities for us to make those social connections in and around the event week,” he said.
Had the team hosted events in other places?“ Most recently we were in Tashkent, Uzbekistan to host our General Assemblies and Awards. And for the same event, we’ re going to be in Shanghai this year, later in December, and then in Doha in 2027. Our conference is now in Macao already for a second year and we’ re
44 Issue 5 2026 www. exhibitionworld. co. uk