Sophia Mobayen
Sr. Event Specialist, Event Operations
SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park
When Sophia Mobayen was hired at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, she witnessed the $5.5 billion NFL complex open its doors to both Los Angeles football teams, the Rams and Chargers, but without a single fan in the stands during the pandemic.
Since May 2021, she’s seen the venue thrive not only hosting sporting events, including the Super Bowl, but the biggest names in music, from The Rolling Stones to Paul McCartney.
“The feeling of seeing the stadium full of fans provided the electric energy SoFi Stadium was built to provide,” said Mobayen, senior event specialist of event operations at the stadium and Hollywood Park. “It has been incredible seeing this building come to life and be on the inaugural team that opened it.”
Mobayen and the rest of the team at SoFi scored an even bigger draw in global superstar Taylor Swift, who just performed a record six sold-out shows at the stadium and attracted hundreds of thousands of fans to Inglewood.
“These artists inspire me, and I hope to have a positive impact in my current and future roles,” Mobayen said. “My goal is to grow to a place where I can inspire and mentor the next generation of event leaders and provide a first-class experience for the fans that come my way.”
By aiming to make a positive impact in the industry, Mobayen is only emulating those who showed her the ropes after graduating from the University of Alabama. She worked Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta as a student and later landed an internship at Rose Bowl Stadium where she learned event planning and execution on a large scale. Mobayen’s trajectory was an old-fashioned one of working at a young age to acquire as much knowledge and experience as possible, and she encourages youngsters to do the same.
“For those starting out, I would recommend the best way to find success is to get exposed to the venue operations world and ask questions,” Mobayen said. “Take advantage of every internship opportunity that comes your way and find mentors that you can go to for advice. It is important to get your feet wet in every aspect of the event world, so you have a better understanding of all the moving puzzle pieces that go into a large-scale event.”
