NCS⁴ NEWS October 16, 2025

Register Now for the 2026 National Professional Sports and Entertainment Safety and Security Forum

The NCS⁴ will host the 2026 National Professional Sports and Entertainment Safety and Security Forum on February 23-24, at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

This event brings together industry leaders to address evolving safety and security challenges and to share best practices for continuous improvement.

Discussion topics are now available! The full agenda will be released soon—don’t miss your chance to join the conversation.

Why Attend?

• Learn from Experts: Gain insights from professional sports and entertainment safety leaders.
• Engage on Key Topics: Participate in moderated discussions on staff training, fan behavior, communications, perimeter security, severe weather planning, and command center operations.
• Share Best Practices: Exchange ideas with peers dedicated to creating safe environments for fans, athletes, and performers.

Who Should Attend?

• Safety, security, operations, event, and facility managers
• Law enforcement (local and state)
• Emergency managers, fire, HAZMAT, EMS
• Guest services and government officials

Note: Private sector companies may only attend as Solution Partners.

What People are saying about the forum

Space is limited! Register by February 2, 2026, or until sold out.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Their participation helps make this event possible.

Interested in sponsoring this event? Click on the button below for more information!

Routledge Handbook of Sport Security

Dr. Stacey Hall, NCS⁴ Executive Director, serves as the Editor of the first-ever published Handbook of Sport Security (available in hardback and eBook format).

The book provides an in-depth analysis of security issues and concerns in contemporary sport. Featuring the work of 60 leading researchers and practitioners from around the world, it offers practical, evidence-based commentary and guidance covering over 40 chapters.

The book examines the multiple stakeholders, agencies, and organizations involved in providing a safe space for spectators, participants, staff, organizations, communities, and sponsors. It considers the coordination of private and public entities in the sports security ecosystem, including facility management, event management, law enforcement, emergency management, emergency medical services, and state/federal government partners, as well as the private sector organizations providing support services. The book also offers a comprehensive analysis of key issues and debates in contemporary sport security, including terrorism, cybersecurity, spectator violence, planning and assessment guidance for sport venues and events of all sizes, management and policy considerations for leaders and decision-makers, and the lessons learned from critical incidents. It introduces the core principles of research methods in sport security and looks ahead at future developments in this rapidly changing field.

This is essential reading for any advanced student, researcher, practitioner, or policymaker with an interest in sport studies, security studies, event studies, criminal justice, management, or public policy.

The NCS⁴ Publishes Industry Research Report on Spectator Perceptions of Safety and Security Practices

This study aims to gauge U.S. sport spectators’ perceptions of safety and security practices at sporting events they have attended, including their awareness of security measures, safety and security concerns while planning to attend an event, and willingness to embrace technological solutions to mitigate threats. Participants included individuals 18 years or older (n=728) who had attended a live professional or collegiate sporting event within the last year. Click the link below to view the report.

GAMEDAY SECURITY Must Read: Open Applications

Applying for SAFETY Act designation and certification status requires a major commitment from venue operators, but the return on investment can be significant. Head to page 20 of the GAMEDAY SECURITY Magazine to see what you can do.

NCS⁴ Attends Global Security Exchange (GSX) in New Orleans

Anthony Palazzolo, NCS⁴ Manager of Marketing and Business Development, attended the GSX in New Orleans, LA, September 29 – October 1. Anthony spent time visiting with solution providers to share information about NCS⁴ programs and services. It was also an opportune time for NCS⁴ Technology Alliance and National Advisory Board members to connect.

Sports Facilities and the Law Celebrates Ten Years

Sports Facilities and the Law, a bi-monthly periodical that provides readers with news, case summaries, and articles involving arenas, stadiums, recreation facilities, and gyms, is celebrating ten years.

Launched by Hackney Publications under the tutelage of Dr. Gil Fried, who serves as Editor-in-Chief, SFL prides itself on delivering actionable strategies to its readers and being offered as free subscription to anyone in the industry.

��Over the last decade, we have become a must-read newsletter for facility managers within the professional, collegiate, high school, and amateur ranks,” said Dr. Fried, who is a sports law professor at the University of West Florida, an author of multiple textbooks, and a highly regarded expert witness. “Our goal at SFL is not just to inform, but to provide solutions to the legal and risk management issues our readers are challenged with.” Click the button below to subscribe to SFL.

The International Association of Emergency Managers – USA (IAEM—USA) Upcoming Webinar

Emergency Managers and Drones: Best Practices and Lessons Learned in Supporting Large Scale Outdoor Events

The International Association of Emergency Managers – USA (IAEM-USA) is hosting a free open-source (unclassified) webinar on Emergency Managers and Drones: Best Practices and Lessons Learned in Supporting Large Scale Outdoor Events, on November 5, 2025, starting at 5 pm EST.

As jurisdictions across the U.S. prepare for major outdoor events in 2026, this session will explore:

• The official use of drones at large-scale events
• The threats and hazards posed by unauthorized unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)
• Strategies for tracking and interdicting unauthorized drones
• Jurisdictional differences in UAS policies and operations

This webinar is designed to support local, county, and state emergency managers in preparing for, responding to, recovering from, and mitigating the impacts of UAS—whether authorized or not.

Expert Panelists, Chris Bolling – Senior Emergency Coordinator, Virginia Tech, FEMA Type 3 Planning Section Chief, FAA Part 107 Drone Pilot, VTEM Drone Program Lead and Ted Ralston – Aerospace Engineer & UAS Expert, Former Boeing & NASA UAS Program Lead, FEMA Trainer, Director at UH Applied Research Lab, Echelon Defense LLC will share real-world insights and answer your questions live through an interactive Q&A session.

The International Association of Certified ISAOs Upcoming Webinar

The State of AI: Balancing Technological Advancements With Security Concerns

The International Association of Certified ISAOs (IACI) is hosting a free webinar on "The State of AI: Balancing Technological Advancements With Security Concerns" on October 23, 2025, starting at 1 pm EST.

Speakers Chad Tetrault, former Deputy CTO of AI Strategy and Implementation at CISA, and Matthew Hackner, former DHS Intelligence and Analysis Branch Chief for Critical Infrastructure Cyber Threat Intelligence. Chad and Matthew will cover topics including AI development and deployment vulnerabilities, standards and regulations, and malicious use of AI. A time of Q&A will follow.

CISA Releases Conflict Prevention Resource

De-escalation Reference Card

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is pleased to announce the release of a new Conflict Prevention resource -- the De-escalation Reference Card -- which is a companion to the De-escalation Series.

This product offers a quickly accessible resource containing overarching actions to help enable non-physical de-escalation of potentially volatile situations. This new product is intended for critical infrastructure owners and operators, front line staff, and public safety officials, as well as any personnel responsible for securing public gathering locations and venues.

The De-escalation Reference Card is one of many CISA offers to assist the critical infrastructure community with conflict prevention, located on a dedicated web page with other free and easily downloadable resources, which can be found on their website.

NCS⁴ eLearning Options

The NCS⁴ eLearning platform, NCS⁴ LEARN, provides opportunities for individuals and organizations to access asynchronous professional development opportunities. Current offerings include the following:

• Frontline Staff Foundational Skills
• Crowd Manager Fundamentals
• Venue Staff Training: Security Awareness
• Senior Leader Course: Sports and Entertainment Security

Please visit the website or contact us at NCS4Learn@usm.edu if you have any questions or would like to inquire about bulk registration.

Click one of the links above or the button below for details on registering.

Fundamentals of Crowd Safety Course

NCS⁴ and GKStill International have partnered to jointly offer the Fundamentals of Crowd Safety online eLearning course to address capability gaps in crowd behavior and sciences. Professor Dr. G. Keith Still, Visiting Professor of Crowd Science at the University of Suffolk, developed this certified, accredited course. The course offers an 8-hour online interactive experience designed to teach the essential elements of crowd safety and crowd risk analysis. The course is especially valuable to event organizers, as it ensures that those who complete it are compliant with the NFPA 101 - Life Safety Code — specifically, the areas of section 12 of the code that require a venue to provide a crowd manager trained in crowd management techniques for occupancies exceeding 1,000.