Events & Organized Play Lead – CardzCon

The Art of Cardz; Doha; On-site; QAR 250,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

The Art of Cardz is seeking an entrepreneurial and commercially driven Events & Organized Play Lead to take full ownership of CardzCon, AOC’s flagship GCC convention. You will lead CardzCon from strategy and commercial planning through to execution and regional expansion.

The role carries responsibility for revenue, profitability, partnerships, exhibitor experience, organized play programs, operations, marketing coordination, and overall visitor experience.

Qualifications

• Minimum 7 years of experience in large-scale events, exhibitions, conventions, entertainment, gaming, sports, or organized play.
• At least 3 years in a senior event leadership or general management role.
• Proven experience managing event budgets, commercial partnerships, sponsorships, exhibitors, and cross-functional teams.
• Strong knowledge of trading cards, collectibles, gaming, or fan communities is highly preferred.
• Experience delivering regional or international events with large visitor numbers.
• Strong commercial judgment, negotiation skills, and operational discipline.
• Ability to manage multiple stakeholders and travel across the GCC, including outside standard hours.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute CardzCon’s overall strategy, business plan, budget, and GCC growth roadmap.
• Own the event’s commercial performance, including revenue, profitability, sponsorships, ticketing, exhibitor sales, and partnerships.
• Build relationships with international and regional brands, distributors, vendors, collectors, creators, celebrities, judges, and tournament organizers.
• Lead planning and delivery of exhibitions, tournaments, product launches, meet-and-greets, live-streaming activities, and VIP experiences.
• Develop an organized play program covering formats, schedules, rules, registration, judging, prizes, and player experience.
• Manage all event workstreams: venue, production, permits, security, logistics, travel, hospitality, vendors, and crowd management.
• Collaborate with Marketing and Content to raise awareness, drive ticket sales, attract exhibitors, and deliver campaign content.
• Recruit and manage event staff, contractors, volunteers, agencies, and partners.
• Establish event policies, procedures, risk controls, contingency plans, and service standards.
• Monitor performance via attendance, revenue, sponsorship value, exhibitor satisfaction, and profitability.
• Prepare post-event reports and improvement plans for future editions.
• Position CardzCon as a leading GCC trading card and collectibles convention.

Job description

CardzCon is AOC’s flagship trading card, collectibles, gaming, and pop-culture convention. Designed as a GCC-level platform, it brings together collectors, players, exhibitors, retailers, content creators, international guests, and leading brands through large-scale exhibitions, tournaments, live entertainment, and exclusive experiences.

About the Role

We are seeking an entrepreneurial and commercially driven Events & Organized Play Lead to take full ownership of CardzCon.

Operating as the Head of the events, the successful candidate will lead CardzCon from strategy and commercial planning through to execution and regional expansion. The role carries responsibility for the event’s revenue, profitability, partnerships, exhibitor experience, organized play programs, operations, marketing coordination, and overall visitor experience.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute CardzCon’s overall strategy, business plan, budget, and GCC growth roadmap.
• Own the event’s commercial performance, including revenue, profitability, sponsorships, ticketing, exhibitor sales, and strategic partnerships.
• Build relationships with international and regional TCG brands, distributors, vendors, collectors, creators, celebrities, judges, and tournament organizers.
• Lead the planning and delivery of exhibitions, tournaments, trade nights, product launches, meet-and-greets, live-streaming activities, and VIP experiences.
• Develop a professional organized play program covering tournament formats, schedules, rules, registration, judging, prizes, and player experience.
• Manage all event workstreams, including venue coordination, production, permits, security, insurance, logistics, travel, hospitality, vendors, and crowd management.
• Work closely with Marketing and Content teams to build event awareness, drive ticket sales, attract exhibitors, and deliver high-quality campaign content.
• Recruit, brief, and manage event employees, contractors, volunteers, agencies, and operational partners.
• Establish event policies, operating procedures, risk controls, contingency plans, and service standards.
• Monitor event performance through attendance, revenue, sponsorship value, exhibitor satisfaction, player participation, customer feedback, and profitability.
• Prepare post-event reports and improvement plans for future editions.
• Position CardzCon as a leading trading card and collectibles convention across the GCC.

Candidate Profile

• Minimum 7 years of experience in large-scale events, exhibitions, conventions, entertainment, gaming, sports, or organized play.
• At least 3 years in a senior event leadership or general management role.
• Proven experience managing event budgets, commercial partnerships, sponsorships, exhibitors, and cross-functional teams.
• Strong knowledge of trading card games, collectibles, gaming, or fan-based communities is highly preferred.
• Experience delivering regional or international events with large visitor numbers.
• Strong commercial judgment, negotiation skills, and operational discipline.
• Ability to manage multiple stakeholders and make effective decisions in a fast-moving event environment.
• Willingness to travel across the GCC and work outside standard hours during event periods.
• Excellent English communication skills; Arabic is an advantage.

What Success Looks Like

• CardzCon is delivered safely, professionally, on time, and within budget.
• Revenue, sponsorship, ticketing, and exhibitor targets are achieved.
• Strong participation from regional and international brands, vendors, players, and creators.
• High visitor, exhibitor, sponsor, and community satisfaction.
• CardzCon develops into a recognized and commercially sustainable GCC event platform.