As the Six Nations gets underway, here at The HAC we’re getting excited about the prospect of rugby, cricket and football returning to the Artillery Gardens in our grounds. For us, the tournament signals the beginning of life getting back to some sort of normal, as sports events are a huge part of what we do here.
The HAC and rugby
The Honourable Artillery Company is an active regiment of the British armed forces. The HAC has a long and proud history of sporting prowess with rugby playing a central role in its achievements. The HAC Rugby Club was founded in 1896 and currently runs four teams with matches played all across London and tours that take teams further afield.
Hiring our sports pitch
Lovingly and professionally tended to by our team of expert grounds staff, the pitch at The HAC meets the high standards expected by international cricket, rugby and football players. Throughout the year we host corporate, charity and professional games and the quality of the ground is often a topic of conversation amongst our players and visitors. One of our regular clients is Saracens, who play many of their games on our pitch.
As our cricket pitch is the only one in the Square Mile, we’re a popular choice for City businesses looking to entertain clients or for somewhere to hold their summer party. Any sports event booking will come with use of our changing rooms and showers for players, which means everyone can be fresh and ready to enjoy whatever catering and entertainment you want to lay on after the game.
Additional rooms and outdoor spaces
As well as keeping exceptional pitches, The HAC also benefits from being able to offer our indoor conference and event spaces for post-match catering and entertainment. While the grounds can hold up to 3,000 spectators, our Prince Consort Rooms can welcome up to 350 for a sit down, gala dinner or 700 reception guests. This large, re-purposed space (which was once a drill hall) has been designed specifically for events and has dedicated organiser’s office, something clients tell us is invaluable for their team.
We also have stunning, period rooms in the adjoining Armoury House - a beautiful, Georgian manor house - in which 172 guests can enjoy a three-course meal and 250 can be hosted for a drinks reception in our Long Room. There are also a whole host of more intimate spaces which can be hired for VIP dinners for anything over 10 guests.
In the warmer months, we have a lovely, sunny terrace that works perfectly for summer cocktails and canapes. The space is nestled in between the lawns and buildings creating a sheltered, sunny spot - ideal for relaxing as the sun goes down.
Catering options at The HAC
All food and drink is prepared onsite by our fabulous caterers, Searcys. Well-known for their restaurant quality dishes, they have a range of menus including buffets, three-course, sit-down dinners, canapes and bowl food. We’re confident you’ll find a menu to perfectly suit your event, but if you’ve got specific dishes or ingredients in mind, we’d be happy to work with you to produce a bespoke menu.
Wherever possible, our kitchens source their ingredients locally from producers with high ethical and sustainable standards. Their menus focus on traditional, British food and their drinks menus have an emphasis on English sparkling wines and craft beers. That said, Searcys’ chefs can turn their hands to any cuisine. However, if you want to bring in specialist caterers we have a number of slots throughout the year during which external caterers can dry hire our kitchens.
The facilities
As we’re used to hosting events like conferences, exhibition, dinners and parties, we have all the audio visual equipment and support you’ll need if you want to incorporate an awards ceremony into your post-match celebrations. Some clients like to play match highlights during their drinks receptions and to have speeches in between courses at dinner. We can accommodate whatever extras you’d like to include in your sports event including live music and dancing.
The integrated lighting system in the Prince Consort Rooms is particularly good for clients who want to brand or theme the room. It also works well for shifting the mood in the space if you’re hosting an event with several different components throughout the evening.
Other outdoor events at The HAC
The Artillery Gardens and sun terrace are both really flexible spaces. Every summer we play host to a large number of corporate summer parties and team building events in our grounds. Organisers tell us one of the main reasons they keep coming back to The HAC for their events is the size of our outdoor area. We can accommodate a whole fairground on the lawns or even an It’s a Knockout-style obstacle course.
Another big pull factor is our location. We’re just a five-minutes-walk from Moorgate and Old Street tube stations and a ten-minutes-walk from Liverpool Street train and tube station. Five acres of green space for hire right in the heart of the City is rare find.
The terrace offers organisers another outdoor options if you’re after a more conventional summer cocktail party. The space has stunning views over our lawns which are framed by the unique City skyline backdrop. With a 690 capacity, the terrace is always booked in conjunction with the Prince Consort Rooms which is situated very nearby, through a pretty courtyard entrance.
Your next sporting event at The HAC
Although we still don’t know whether or not we’ll be able to host any rugby, cricket or football matches this year, we’d love to talk to you about your plans for 2021. We are already open for smaller events as we’ve received our Good to Go accreditation, so you can be sure that when restrictions are lifted, we will be back to running our larger events with the safety of our guests and organising teams at the forefront of everything we do. If you’d like to discuss any upcoming projects with the venue team here, please call us on 020 7382 1533 or email
