2025 Impact Intl. UK/Euro Honoree: Stefan Elenkov

STEFAN ELENKOV
Founder & CEO
Fest Team Bulgaria

BUILDING BALKAN BUSINESS ONE STADIUM SHOW AT A TIME

Stefan Elenkov, founder and CEO of Fest Team, saw his favorite band, Depeche Mode, live for the first time in 2006 at Stadion Lokomotiv in the Bulgarian capital Sofia. “What stayed with me,” he recalls, “was the sight of a stadium full of people singing and dancing together, smiling and crying at the same time.”

Elenkov is now staging unforgettable moments himself alongside his trusted team. This year alone, Guns N’ Roses, Enrique Iglesias, Robbie Williams and Ed Sheeran sold out stadiums in Bulgaria, capped off by Robbie Williams’ concert in Sofia.

Elenkov says the Balkans are the biggest opportunity in live entertainment right now. “With Schengen travel easing movement, routing Bucharest–Budapest–Sofia–Athens is straightforward; add Belgrade and Istanbul and you’ve got a tour with real weight. Pair that with passionate audiences and ticket prices that remain more accessible than in Western Europe, and you have a compelling touring proposition.”

Remaining challenges include the lack of a purpose-built music hall in Sofia, where “We’ve had to improvise, transforming sports venues, building temporary structures, and mastering complex logistics. It’s not ideal, but it made us more inventive and resilient,” Elenkov explains, noting increased touring costs as an added challenge. “Add bureaucracy that slows progress, and you have headwinds. We counter this with transparency, smarter routing, and relentless fan focus.”

Forty thousand people coming together to see Robbie Williams or Guns N’ Roses proves Elenkov and his team are on to something, as does their own Hills of Rock festival, which continues to grow. Together with two partners, Elenkov just launched Fest Management, which he describes as “our own new artist-management company dedicated to developing world-class artists and Bulgarian talents for the international stage.” Fest Team is working toward a new arena in Sofia, toward forming a single pipeline to “discover, develop, and deliver” the next wave of headliners.”