$10 Million Investment in Flight Club's Parent Company: Experience-Focused Bar Model Grows in the U.S.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to get consumers out for dining or drinking alone in the restaurant and bar sector. Therefore, concepts like 'eatertainment' and 'competitive socialising', which combine F&B with entertainment in the same venue, are creating a different growth area compared to the classic restaurant model.

State of Play Hospitality, the North American operator of Flight Club, is preparing to inject new capital into this model. The company has raised $10 million in growth capital from its existing investors. The funds are primarily intended to finance Flight Club's growth in North America. With four new locations planned to open in New York, Dallas, Minneapolis, and Nashville, the brand's footprint in the U.S. will increase from 11 to 15 venues.

Growing Sales Behind the $10 Million

The investment is not solely based on future expectations.

In the fiscal year ending March 29, 2026, State of Play's group revenue increased by 19% to $72 million. Venue EBITDA rose by 28% to $18 million, while group EBITDA increased by 45% to $7.7 million. Flight Club's same-store sales in the U.S. also grew by 8.3% during the same period.

These figures are financial performance data published alongside the company's investment announcement; they are not independent audited public company results. Nevertheless, Nation’s Restaurant News corroborates the same data, confirming that the investment comes from existing investors and represents a new growth step following the previous funding round.

The company's U.S. operations now account for a larger share of revenue. According to FSR, the American operations constituted more than 80% of State of Play's revenue for the fiscal year 2026; this figure was 72% the previous year.

Flight Club's Product is Not Darts, but Group Experience

Flight Club is establishing a different model from the traditional dart hall.

The brand combines multiplayer dart games supported by automatic scoring technology with food, drinks, and reserved group areas. According to the official brand narrative, the first Flight Club opened in 2015 in Shoreditch, London; the concept later expanded to the U.S., Australia, and Ireland through franchise and licensing partnerships.

The business model in the U.S. is operated through State of Play Hospitality. The company also operates the table tennis-focused AceBounce and the Hijingo concept in the UK. However, since Flight Club accounts for approximately 80% of the group's revenue, this brand is the main growth engine in the new investment.

The economic logic of the model differs from that of a classic restaurant table.

Customers make reservations not only for dining but also for a specific period of gameplay. In this case, the business can generate game revenue, F&B revenue, and group reservations from the same visit.

Corporate Events are a Critical Revenue Source

State of Play attributes Flight Club's current performance to demand for corporate events, celebrations, and social group reservations.

This point is significant for HORECA businesses.

While a classic restaurant tries to increase turnover per table during peak hours, the value of reservations in experience-focused venues can be calculated differently. A group purchases both the gaming area and consumes food and drinks; in larger organizations, a special event package may also come into play.

Therefore, revenue management does not focus solely on table turnover rates.

Key metrics that the business needs to measure include revenue per gaming area, per capita F&B spending, group reservation conversion rates, special event revenue, and area utilization rates on an hourly basis.

Eatertainment is Growing but Not Everyone is Winning

Flight Club's performance does not mean that all experience-focused restaurant models are successful.

Nation’s Restaurant News reminds that during the same period, some concepts like Flight Club and Level99 grew, while larger players like Dave & Buster’s and Pinstripes faced different operational and financial pressures. Some entertainment concepts like Dueling Axes have closed down.

This distinction is important.

Adding a dartboard, bowling lane, or gaming system to a venue does not automatically create higher profitability.

The experience component requires additional investment. Costs for technology, maintenance, gaming equipment, extensive real estate, employee training, and reservation systems are added to the restaurant model.

A successful eatertainment concept must offset these additional costs with higher visit frequency, group reservations, and strong F&B spending.

Why are Four New Cities Important?

Flight Club's next U.S. locations are planned to open in New York, Dallas, Minneapolis, and Nashville.

The common feature of these markets is not just population size.

The presence of corporate entertainment, urban nightlife, group organizations, and tourism traffic may be more favorable for high-capacity experience venues like Flight Club.

Particularly, the New York opening is significant for brand visibility. According to a CoStar report from August 2026, State of Play CEO Toby Harris mentioned that he sees the potential for more than 50 Flight Club locations in North America in the long term. This is not a management target or a commitment to realized growth.

Therefore, the short-term goal of 15 locations can be interpreted as an intermediate stage of a longer-term and larger-scale plan.

Experience Investment Should Not Diminish F&B Quality

The primary risk of eatertainment models is that the entertainment element overshadows food and beverage.

A customer may come for gaming on their first visit. However, to create repeat visits, the quality of service and menu must also be sufficient.

Flight Club positions itself not just as a dart concept but as a social experience venue with a bar and kitchen program. On the official brand page, gaming, group events, brunch, and bar and kitchen are presented under separate product headings.

At this point, two separate quality standards emerge from the business perspective:

the gaming must operate smoothly, and the F&B service should not slow down the gaming experience.

A technological malfunction can disrupt gameplay time. Delays at the bar can diminish the group experience. If the menu is too complex, service operations in the gaming areas can become challenging.

Therefore, kitchen and entertainment operations should not be designed separately but within the same customer journey.

Could There Be a Counterpart in Turkey?

Businesses in Turkey that combine bowling, gaming, karaoke, or sports activities with F&B are not new. However, the Flight Club model makes the activity the main reason for purchasing the venue rather than an ancillary service.

This approach can be particularly examined for businesses targeting large groups, corporate events, and social organizations in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and tourist destinations.

However, the most critical element of the investment is not the popularity of the type of game.

The business must answer the following questions:

What is the investment cost per area? How many people can the gaming area serve per hour? How much F&B does a guest consume during gameplay? Is there demand for corporate events during weekdays? What are the equipment maintenance costs? Can the experience generate repeat visits?

If this data is lacking, a high-tech entertainment area can turn into an expensive but underutilized real estate.

Stafflink's Perspective

The remarkable aspect of the new $10 million investment in Flight Club is not just the amount of capital.

In our view, the strength of the model lies in evaluating the restaurant customer not as a "diner" but as a group purchasing time.

In a traditional restaurant, a customer staying at the table for a long time can reduce table turnover rates. In venues like Flight Club, however, a longer stay can be part of revenue through game reservations and additional drink consumption.

Therefore, the eatertainment economy cannot be managed solely with classic restaurant KPIs.

Businesses in Turkey looking to invest in this model must first measure not just the gaming trend but the total revenue per square meter and event demand.

If experience, F&B, and special event revenues support each other, the model can be strong. If one of these has to subsidize the others, growth may not be sustainable.