mondo | stadia - Issue 16

ROCKET MORTGAGE FIELDHOUSE

STADE SAINT-SYMPHORIEN

TWICKENHAM STOOP STADIUM

BROADCAST FOCUS

LG and JBL Pro provide the technology for the new audiovisual system at Cleveland Cavaliers’ home.

A new, state-of-the-art audio system is now in place at FC Metz’s stadium, which is undergoing a huge upgrade.

Harlequins become the first professional sports club in the UK to install UV-C lighting technology.

We showcase impressive projects and high-end products from the sports broadcasting industry.

ISSUE 16 - FEBRUARY | MARCH 2021

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16 WELCOME

e’ve covered plenty of projects over the past year that have really stood out when it comes to adapting to the situation we find ourselves in, particularly when it comes to the lack of fans in venues. However, I think many in the industry would agree that the incredible WWE ThunderDome has really led the way. The robust, large-scale virtual fan experience, delivered by The Famous Group, Quince Imaging and Frozen Mountain, as well as Screenworks and ROE Visual, at the Amway Center, has been a revelation. It’s a bold technological feat that has really paid off. You can read our full cover story on page 36.

Elsewhere, we’ve taken a closer look at the new, state-of-the-art audiovisual upgrade at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. With its new JBL Pro audio system and digital displays from LG, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ home offers an enhanced experience for fans.

As we hopefully move towards fans returning to stadiums, we have covered Signify’s UV-C lighting installation at Twickenham Stoop Stadium - the first of its kind at a UK professional club. Rugby union side, Harlequins, have embraced the technology in a bid to keep players and supporters safe.

Don’t forget to check out Kick Off, too - we’ve focussed on some impressive projects and products from the world of sports broadcasting.

Finally, we’ll be officially launching MONDO | STADIA presents AGORA Online soon. Make sure you keep 20-22 April free - we’ve got an array of expert keynote speakers and interesting panel discussions lined up. In the meantime, send me an e-mail - s.hughes@mondiale.co.uk - if you’d like to be involved.

W

Sam Hughes Editor

16 INSIDE…

Cover image: Courtesy of The Famous Group Editor Sam Hughes s.hughes@mondiale.co.uk

Assistant Editor Emma Davidson e.davidson@mondiale.co.uk

Digital Content Manager James Robertson j.robertson@mondiale.co.uk

Senior Account Manager Jamie Dixon j.dixon@mondiale.co.uk

Account Manager Laura Iles l.iles@mondiale.co.uk

Design & Production Dan Seaton d.seaton@mondiale.co.uk

Dave Bell d.bell@mondiale.co.uk

CEO Justin Gawne j.gawne@mondiale.co.uk

Finance Director Amanda Giles a.giles@mondiale.co.uk

Credit Control

TEAM TALK 006 ADXBA

VENUE FOCUS AUDIO

046 Stade Saint-Symphorien | Metz, France

ar@mondiale.co.uk

Group Chairman Damian Walsh

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LIGHTING

010 Stade de la Mineau | Strasbourg, France

052 Twickenham Stoop Stadium | Twickenham,

MONDO | STADIA is published by Mondiale Media Limited, Strawberry Studios, Watson Square, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, UK Tel: +44 161 476 8340

012 Lusail Stadium | Lusail, Qatar

England

Printed By Buxton Press

HOSPITALITY

KICK OFF

056 Ascot Racecourse | Ascot, England

014 Broadcast

EXTRA TIME

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THE FULL PITCH

062 Venue Tech Directory

028 Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse | Cleveland, USA

064 Full Time | MAG Audio

036 WWE ThunderDome | Orlando, USA

066 Event Diary

NICK SHAW SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR, ADXBA Images: ADXBA

V

ideo screens are an integral part

reduce the total number of displays needed,

Think about operational time

of the live sport experience. From

because the screen that displays wayfinding

If all your displays aren’t running 24/7, then

scoreboards, jumbo screens and

messaging for fans arriving at your venue can

they probably don’t all need to be commercial

perimeter advertising displays, to

become a repeater screen during the game and

grade screens. Repeater screens in hospitality

show social distancing messages at halftime.

suites that are only used for eight hours on

wayfinding and menu boards, digital displays are an essential part of stadium safety. They

006

a match day don’t need to meet the same

also provide opportunities for fan engagement

Consider the cost of connectivity

specifications as displays that are used

and are a vital source of advertising income.

To get the most out of your CMS system, your

throughout the day for wayfinding, promotions

But, they also represent a significant

displays need to be able to take a refreshed

and visitor messaging. Venues can save money

investment - one that many venues will

feed regularly. Either a system-on-chip

by specifying and integrating the appropriate

struggle to find funding for after one of the

display, or a screen with a separate set-top

technology for each use, and only using

COVID-19 pandemic.

box can provide this connectivity, but each

commercial grade displays where necessary.

Sports venues can reduce spend and cut

option has its own pros and cons. The set-top

Using traditional TV screens in some areas can

running costs without compromising digital

box’s external memory means it can continue

result in as much as a 20% saving.

display solutions by making wise decisions

playback if the system loses connection with

about what technology to include in its

the CMS, whereas the system-on-chip display

Remember, content is king

display network, and to ensure they’re used

generally only buffers the last image shown.

Think about what content you’re going to

efficiently. Here are some pointers to consider.

However, any issues with the system-on-chip

display on each screen before spending money

display will require a complete replacement,

on ultra-high-definition displays. Even

Create a multipurpose network

whereas you only need to replace the faulty

multipurpose display networks have screens

Investing in a good CMS will allow you to

component in a set-top box solution.

that are predominantly used for one purpose

create a multipurpose network of connected

Ultimately, though, the lower price point of

or another and there’s simply no need to buy a

but independent displays, which give you the

the system-on-chip screen mitigates some of

4K screen if it’s only ever going to be used for

freedom to share any message, on almost any

its drawbacks and may make it a preferable

wayfinding.

combination of screens at any time. You also

solution.

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TEAM TALK

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007

TEAM TALK

Avoid over-engineered systems

Switch your displays off when they’re not in

There’s a fine balance between future-

use

proofing and over-engineering. Adding

This sounds obvious, but sometimes the

unnecessary outputs and functionality not only

manual process of switching systems on and

increases the purchase price of audiovisual

off can become so time and labour intensive

equipment, but can also add to your everyday

that it costs almost as much as leaving the

running costs. The same applies when it

systems running 24/7. Using motion sensors

comes to implementing solutions that aren’t

to control when audiovisual systems switch on

fit for purpose - like using fine pixel pitch

and off is a more efficient way of managing

LED when the closest audience member is

your display uptime.

over 10-metres away and won’t notice the difference in resolution - or using outdoor

Reuse, reduce and recycle wherever possible

displays which produce 5,000 nits of light in

One way to do this is by using standard-

an indoor environment where only 1,000 nits

size LED cabinets so that, when it’s time to

are necessary.

upgrade your display, you can replace the individual modules but not the cabinet. Other

Choose efficient products

options include using eco-friendly materials

A system-on-chip display uses less power

for building mounts and recycling the heat

than a display with a separate set-top

from your HVAC system to create power.

box does. While the difference in power

Finally, instead of running new copper cables

consumption for one unit may not be

to supply power and network connections

substantial, if you’re deploying a large number

to your audiovisual systems, consider using

of new displays, the system you choose

wireless devices and distributing content and

can make a big difference to your overall

data using AV over IP.

energy efficiency and costs. Similarly, simply mounting your display in a recess can also increase energy and other costs. Because digital displays generate heat, if they’re mounted in a way that restricts the airflow around the system they can create ‘hot spots’, which have to be corrected with increased airconditioning.

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www.adxba.co.uk

STADE DE LA MEINAU Strasbourg, France Rendering: Populous

opulous has been appointed as Lead Architect for the 100 million euro Stade de la Meinau renovation project in Strasbourg, France.

Owned by the Strasbourg municipality, the football stadium is the home ground of Ligue 1 club, Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace.

The design seeks to modernise the existing stadium, bringing it firmly into the 21st century and allowing it to meet all the necessary requirements for hosting major sporting events, such as the French Ligue 1 championship and UEFA Champion’s League games, as well as international games. The scheme will increase the stadium’s capacity, create new fan spaces, and expand the South Stand - improving fan experience and opening significant new revenue streams to the club. It will also incorporate new environmentally sustainable design features into the building. Commencing on site in May 2022, the project will be completed in July 2025.

Around the ground, the restructuring of the stands, with the addition of new, removable seating tiers, will lower front row seating and bring it closer to the pitch, increasing the capacity of the stadium from 26,282 to circa 32,000.

The West Stand, also known as ‘The Kop’, will remain primarily a standing terrace.

The South Stand expansion will create new fan spaces and operational facilities centred around a glass fronted fivestorey atrium, with new bars, hospitality lounges, and two ‘party decks’ - open spaces overlooking the pitch for fans to meet up.

The renovation of the North, East and West Stands will enclose the concourses, allowing new bars and food and

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drink concessions to be incorporated, with a new internal service route connecting the stands. Outside the stadium, a fan zone will be developed in consultation with the community and the club’s supporters.

Taking advantage of the renovation strategy proposed by the municipality and the Racing Club de Strasbourg, the amount of demolition works required within the design has been reduced to an absolute minimum. The project will take significant steps to reduce its carbon footprint and careful attention will be paid to the protection and retention of the local ecology. Materials from the original building that are removed in the demolition process will be utilised in the construction process for the new renovations, and a suite of new environmentally sustainable design features will be incorporated into the building including; innovative reuse of 4,400 sq metres of decommissioned A340 aircraft fuselage sections to create the south façade sunshade; rainwater recycling facilities; and site connection to a heat network powered by renewable energy (biomass).

Francois Clement, Senior Principle, Populous, said: “The renovation of La Meinau will bring Racing Club de Strasbourg’s supporters closer to the pitch in an environmentally controlled development. Sustainability has been key to our design strategy and includes an innovative upcycling approach to reuse Airbus A340 fuselages to for the main façade sunshade.”

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LUSAIL STADIUM Lusail, Qatar Rendering: AFL Architects ue for completion this year, Lusail Stadium is the largest stadium and centrepiece venue for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar. Lusail Stadium will host the opening and closing matches of the tournament, and will become one of the key landmarks of Lusail, the brand-new city north of Doha.

The optimised final design will provide a world-class spectator experience, luxurious VVIP and VIP hospitality facilities, and an unforgettable atmosphere deserved of the first ever FIFA World Cup to be hosted in the Arab world and only the second in Asia.

“The developed design and delivery of Lusail Stadium marks an important milestone for AFL Architects. Our involvement on this project represents the pinnacle of our international journey so far, and our team has impressed with their relentless dedication and enthusiasm,” said John Roberts, Sports Director, AFL Architects.

The fully coordinated design draws from the strengths of AFL

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Architects’ diverse teams and the experience of stadium experts across 10 countries, who performed a full creative and technical review of the original iconic concept.

The stadium has an almost perfectly circular footprint and will not only top all stadia in Qatar in terms of capacity, but also throughout the Middle East. Net capacity of 80,000 was established for the 2022 tournament, while a portion of the auditorium will be dismantled in legacy mode, opening up space for non-football use.

The outer form of the stadium will resemble a giant bowl with limited footprint, growing upwards and becoming more impressive for arriving spectators. Very detailed and elegant triangular pattern adorns the stadium. Both the pattern and bowl shape are inspired

by Qatari craftsmanship. The stadium’s cable-membrane roof has a similarly intricate pattern, with sections of membrane creating diamond-shaped elements.

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KICK OFF | BROADCAST A closer look at products and projects from the broadcast world.

NBA BUBBLE DISGUISE Fuse Technical Group turned to 13 disguise gx 2c media servers with Designer software and Sockpuppet control features to help deliver a home game feel for teams and fans at home, as the NBA resumed its season.

The NBA has set up a ‘bubble’ isolation zone at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida to enable professional basketball to resume in the US, while keeping players safe. Although spectators were not permitted in the stands at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex where the games were held, fans have been able to watch televised basketball once again.

From July to October 2020, the bubble played host to the final games of the 2019–20 NBA regular season and the 2020 playoffs. Four production teams ran 33 scrimmage games and 88 regular season games across three courts, amounting to over 9,000 minutes of basketball broadcast to millions of viewers worldwide - making this one of the longest-running live TV productions powered by disguise.

Three basketball courts were created in the sports complex and giant wraparound LED video screens topped by graphics displays were installed. A database of music, audio cues and graphics ordinarily used by the teams in their arenas were adapted to customise the courts for the designated ‘home team’. A bank of in-game reactions was also developed to support big plays and help support the natural momentum of the game. All of these were in addition to the 400ish virtual fans that were displayed during normal gameplay.

During the one-week quarantine transition into the bubble, the production team made use of disguise’s pre-visualisation to

review content and cue up sessions with the screens producers via Zoom. “Pre-vis was an indispensable part of this process.

It helped the teams to understand the layout of the screens and some of the impact without being onsite,” said Jackson Gallagher, Programmer at Fuse.

The team decided to use disguise’s Sockpuppet workflow to enable them to respond quickly to gameplay and the evolving nature of the overall game experience. Games were played on three courts simultaneously where any of the 22 teams could be the home team, so Fuse kept its six full-size grandMA3 consoles in network together to continually update programming and move it to different courts based on which teams were playing where each day. www.disguise.one

ECLPANEL PROLIGHTS Since its launch last year, the PROLIGHTS EclPanel range of soft lights which includes 2x1 and 1x1 fixtures has already been adopted for a number of broadcast applications around the world. Its high-quality soft white output and high refresh PWM settings help to ensure all the action is captured in the right light on camera, and looks just as good for those watching on a screen. The EclPanel consists of RGBW + Warm White sources with a six colour LED array. It is also able to produce an extensive number of mixed colours and cinematic effects, providing the opportunity to creatively use the lighting to reflect the action taking place.

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The fixture is incredibly versatile with an onboard driver and built-in power supply. In addition to this, the fixture is lightweight and offers easy rigging making it the perfect lighting tool for numerous locations. Adding to the versatility of this unit, the EclPanel performs to high standards in both indoor and outdoor venues. Multiple control options really puts the power in your hands, whether you prefer to do it manually or via RDM, the choice is yours. www.ac-et.com

KICK OFF

BRIO CALREC Tall Audio, which is now 10 years old, is owned by Alex Wrigglesworth and Paul Stadden. During the first UK lockdown, they worked on multiple projects using new, and innovative remote working techniques and some existing remote production skills to overcome what were very challenging production scenarios.

Tall Audio provides complete solutions - clients often come to them to take advantage of their end-to-end approach, hiring all the specialists needed including the planning, liaising with other companies as required and taking advantage of their large amount of equipment.

Covering motorcycling, specifically MotoGP, first for the BBC and for many years now with BT Sport, has been a mainstay of their business. Alex explained: “We also worked on the Alternative Elections for C4 before Christmas and that was the first outing for the Calrec Brio console. We mixed all the outside sources with the Brio using Dante (AoIP). That was amazing. It worked very well. We also provided kit and crew.”

But then came COVID and as for so many, the impact was swift and extremely tough to take in, but in a twist of fate, it turned out to be advantageous that the MotoGP season was very quickly postponed, allowing Tall Audio to tackle the overall situation head-on. Paul explained: “That’s when we spoke to Timeline Television. A Director friend of ours told us about this technology they were going to use for parts of the Olympics (Timeline’s Stream Anywhere app), which became invaluable.

We started chatting to Timeline and within a few days I had a talkback panel and a Unity Connect, which is public internet transport technology we’ve been using, to see if it worked over public internet for us. Timeline played a massive part in this. They are very experienced in remote production and this helped hugely when it came to remote working. Within a week or so, we handled a corporate internal job for BT Sport. Then quickly after that we pre-recorded a football show and then on the Sunday a live Moto GP show! After that it exploded.”

Stadden and Wrigglesworth were based in their respective houses, both with a Calrec Brio and an AoIP Dante network.

When working with Timeline on BT Sport lockdown projects, they are all embedded feeds that come in, whether that be from an iPhone or Mobile Viewpoint hardware unit, a satellite feed or from an EVS system. These were then put onto a Dante network and sent across to Tall Audio via Unity, which can have up to 64 mono channels of audio. But over public internet it did vary, and they had to play around with buffer times and latency.

It was Paul who worked mainly on the sports work that came in.

He furthered: “Most of what we did was live. We had two mixers running, one as redundancy. This is a case of two people mixing simultaneously in case of an issue so any changeover would be seamless.

Tall Audio needed consoles that fitted the very limited amount of space that they had, but that also gave them the edge in terms of broadcast quality and functionality. Paul added: “The routing capabilities of the Brio along with the ‘bird beater’ control (being able to open a fader that automatically mutes another send) were invaluable. Without these, it’s impossible to work as quickly and concisely as we needed to. You are getting the power of a much larger desk in a small footprint. We also had good internet with low jitter (low irregular packet delay) and that was also crucial.”

The embedded feeds would come in from BT Sport in Stratford, London, via Timeline in Ealing and then Paul would have two commentators from home using Glensound Paradiso commentator units over IP (using Comrex for this). The audio was

then de-embedded in Ealing and then via Dante audio, through a frame sync, to him. There was also a pitch side reporter at some games when they did Premier League matches. All of that went through the Brio in his garage. The commentators could also hear the studio via the Brio.

Paul said: “We streamed out onto the Unity but we also went via a Comrex interface as well, which is an IP codec. Our master output tended to go via the Comrex because it was a little bit more stable than the Unity. Also, because it was about delays in terms of comms, we wanted to be able to get the audio back as soon as possible. So, the Comrex was primary, the Unity secondary. There’s an app called Unity Intercomm, which is a talkback app. So remote presenters would listen to the talkback app but also have a mic plugged into it.”

Timeline’s Sound Guarantees had to work extremely hard, routing all the video and comms audio from their homes. The routing matrix on a Calrec Apollo desk in Ealing was accessed remotely to route all the EVS feeds onto Dante lines to get back into Unity. The audio was remotely de-embedded and routed completely remotely, similarly with the intercom feeds.

The football – Bundesliga and some Premier League – was very complex to work on because Tall Audio had to create three different mixes: a clean commentary, an effects mix and one with post-match interviews. The Timeline TV Sound Guarantees in Ealing would time the Dante and the Comrex output so that everything was in sync. This was a real challenge with live football. Paul’s multiviewer was receiving feeds via the internet and that was how that was distributed to all the directors, EVS operators and the rest of those working at home.

“The underlying thing is that with the Calrec Brios, we had consoles that did absolutely everything we asked of them. They have been used pretty much every day for the last 13 weeks, often for 10 hours a day, not in air-conditioned rooms - very far from it - they just worked, and they worked brilliantly with Dante. This also wouldn’t have happened without Timeline. We worked very, very closely with them to achieve this,” concluded Paul. www.calrec.com

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KICK OFF SPACE FORCE CHROMA-Q Having been used on major league sporting events broadcast in the US, Chroma-Q’s LED Space Force provides lighting that looks good on and off camera, whilst also helping to optimise energy.

The soft variable white light provides bright, smooth even coverage, and the PWM flicker-free operation ensures all of the action can be seen clearly, both on camera, as well as in the audience.

With multiple hanging options the Space Force offers great versatility for spaces that are used for a variety of events. Wireless DMX / RDM options, provide further flexibility to control each fixture remotely, saving time and hassle.

When competition is heating up, you don’t want your fixtures to.

Space Force is cool running, so no matter how heated things get in the sports venue, you can be sure the units will keep their cool and every detail of the action will be crystal clear. Using the same proven convection cooling technology found in other Chroma-Q LED models - which eliminates the need for noisy cooling fans - the Space Force provides totally silent running operation. The Space Force also benefits from energy efficiency, lightweight design, and minimum maintenance. www.ac-et.com

FERRARI’S ITALIAN MUGELLO CIRCUIT MARSHALL ELECTRONICS When Ferrari’s Mugello Circuit made its debut in last year’s Formula 1 championships, the Italian luxury sports car manufacturer was looking for a high-quality, cost effective solution that could capture all the exciting motor sports action in 4K. Searching to find cameras capable of providing ultra-crisp and clear broadcast quality images for the safety, security and control teams at the circuit, Mugello turned to MarCam Europe, one of Marshall Electronics exclusive distribution partners in the region. MarCam specified over 40 Marshall CV630-IP and CV420-18X cameras, including weatherproof housings and PTZ controllers.

“Given how the past year has been affected by the global pandemic and the timescale we and our trusted Italian integrator were given, we knew the importance of meeting such a tight delivery schedule,” said Spencer Doran, MarCam Europe.

“However, being the European master distributor for all Marshall cameras, lenses, and associated accessories, MarCam Europe along with our Italian integrator and of course support from Marshall HQ, rose to the occasion. Together, we successfully helped get the Mugello Circuit ready for the championships on Ferrari’s 1000th race on the F1 grid. A race that we can all agree and say unfolded as one of the best of the 2020 F1 season.”

The CV630-IP Pan-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) Camera captures crisp 4K (UHD) video combined with smooth PTZ camera positioning and 30X optical zoom for a versatile networked video solution. The CV630-IP packs a powerful Sony 8-megapixel 1/2.5-inch sensor capturing up to Ultra-HD 3840x2160p video, with support for HD 1920x1080p and 1280x720p. The CV420-18X is a compact Zoom Block 18x 4K and UHD camera that offers durability and performance with HDR support. The CV420-18X features a wide range of crystal clear 4K, UHD and HD selections in 4096x2160p, 3840x2160p, 1920x1080p, 1280x720p and interlaced with 1920x1080i.

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weatherproof dome housings for the CV630-IP PTZ cameras were also installed alongside Marshall controllers for both sets of cameras. The installation, quality and economics of using Marshall cameras together with the advice and support supplied

by MarCam Europe at Mugello hasn’t gone unnoticed, with other major sporting venues already looking at the Mugello circuit’s brand-new camera set-up as the new standard for their own venues.

“As a value-add partner for Marshall Cameras in the region, MarCam did an incredible job of getting the right cameras and equipment to the Mugello Circuit on time with local technical support,” said Tod Musgrave, Director, Marshall Camera Division.

“Marshall has become a global source for broadcast pro AV cameras with HD, UHD, and 4K resolution capabilities, our cameras are designed to a higher standard of video quality at reasonable price points that in this case were instrumental in capturing these beautiful high speed, high performance race cars in action.” www.marshall-usa.com

KICK OFF

AFAS STADIUM MOBILE VIEWPOINT Alkmaar Zaanstreek, better known as AZ Alkmaar or simply AZ, have selected an AI driven camera studio for creating their own TV productions situated within their AFAS Stadium. AZ is a Dutch professional football club from Alkmaar, playing in the Eredivisie, the highest professional football league in the Netherlands.

AZ haven decided upon vPilot that allows them to create professional studio productions without the need of camera people or an onsite director by utilising the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create shots and direct cameras.

The studio build was completed by Buckdesign, a local company based in the Netherlands who designed the studio layout, managed the installation of the vPilot system and installed all the necessary lighting, backdrops, furniture and screen required for the studio build.

The vPilot system is developed by IQ Video Solutions, a brand of Mobile Viewpoint, who specialise in live streaming and AI solutions for broadcast. The vPilot system utilises commercially available PTZ cameras, which through the use of additional 3D scanners and the AI software, can track people within the studio, while utilising a virtual director to create the production with different shots and any necessary graphics, inserts and external feeds, to create a completely automated professional production without the need of a camera team or director.

Michael Koster, Commercial Director at AZ explained: “In the long term, having our own studio for a variety of different broadcast applications is our plan, but with the current pandemic we have a high priority for keeping channels of communication open for our loyal fanbase, while we play behind closed doors.

The pre-match and post-match analysis that we live stream

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allows us to keep our fan engagement relevant and close. The longer term plan is that we intend for the studio to be used by broadcasters and for other external communications, as well as a platform for a university course that we are setting up.”

Peter Buck the Managing Director at Buckdesign commented: “AZ is a very well-known football team, not just as a top flight team in the Netherlands but across Europe and the world as an active participant in the Champions League. To be involved with AZ, and have the opportunity to build their studio in such an iconic environment, is a great privilege for us.”

Michel Bias the Managing Director of Mobile Viewpoint and IQ Video Solutions said: “We have been developing AI solutions for sports and studio productions for the last 18 months, and to have our local Eredivisie football team to implement our technology is a great honour for us and justifies many of the manhours we have put into this evolving technology. We are pleased this co-operation with AZ and Buck will lead to same great productions for AZ, their fans, sponsors and partners.”

Michael concluded: “The power of AI to operate the studio without the need of a camera team allows us to both be flexible and quick to react, but also keeps our costs and media down. The professional studio built by Buck is the professional appearance we want to give. We look forward to increasing our professional video output.” www.mobileviewpoint.com www.iqvideosolutions.com

KICK OFF

PUSKAS CENTER GREEN HIPPO A Hippotizer Tierra+ Media Server from Green Hippo, the specialist creator of tools for the real-time manipulation of video for the audiovisual industries, is driving the videowall content at the spectacular WVU Football facility at West Virginia University’s new Puskar Center, in Morgantown, WV. Providing state-of-the-art spaces for players, coaches, staff and visitors, the WVU Puskar Center development is, with the help of Hippotizer, transforming the home of WVU Football, putting its facilities ahead of the competition.

The video playback solution was designed by BrightTree Studios and installed by its parent company, Synergy Media Group, preferred technology suppliers to WVU. It encompasses five large screens in the spacious, luxuriously modern Locker Room, including a main video wall and four ‘end-cap’ screens located at the ends of the locker rows. The Tierra+ Media Server will also handle content feeds and mapping duties for screens in other areas in future phases of this major construction project.

“This was our first project using Hippotizer, and we’ve had a great experience with it,” said David Vargo, Principal of BrightTree Studios. “It allowed us to create the space using the Visualiser software so that we could plan and vision the spaces with the client before the actual construction.

This allowed us to develop customised content with WVU’s video producer, Austin Gaines, months before installation, which helped to keep the project on schedule.”

Lead AV Designer at Synergy Media Group, Cory Sarzotti, explained: “This ‘show’ realm, or ‘theatre space’ is not really an area that corporate AV has had a lot to do with in the past, but we’re starting to see more and more requirement for it from our clients. And for this type of work, Hippotizer is a new tool in our toolbelt.”

Cory worked closely with Green Hippo’s Nick Spencer on the integration of the Hippotizer, programming a custom Crestron control system and mapping the content to the multiple screens, all of non-standard resolution. He found the Hippotizer features, along with the “incredibly supportive” backup, to be extremely helpful in achieving such great results.

“The VideoMapper was really useful in addressing content, especially to the end-cap screens in the Locker Room,” he said. “It was also incredibly helpful that the Hippotizer is well known, and that other engineers we were working with on the project had used it before.”

Cory also praised the Hippotizer’s Third Party Control API, commenting: “This allowed me to program an incredible level of detailed control for the customer, recalling complicated show presets with a single touch panel button.”

Also of huge benefit was the accessibility of the Hippotizer interface. “We have some formal client training scheduled,” said Cory, “but because Nick has been training me, and I’ve been showing the client all through the project, they’re already very familiar with it, and are able to manage content, make changes, create presets and add new content.”

He concluded: “Really, the Hippotizer interface is accessible enough to anyone who is familiar with the creative software world, and that’s been really helpful.” www.green-hippo.com

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USA TRANS AM SERIES CP COMMUNICATIONS CP Communications has joined forces with Greenlight Television, highly experienced producers of sports and documentaries to demonstrate the value of remote production models for sports and live events. Greenlight produced and live-streamed the USA based muscle car racing championship, the Trans Am Series, for fans worldwide - embracing IP and bonded cellular systems from CP Communications - to reduce local costs and limit infrastructure, while keeping a small crew safe and healthy.

At the end of 2019, Greenlight were challenged by the Trans Am Series to come up with a quality live stream without the costs of an Outside Broadcast Truck, and so architected a creative solution that limited costs without sacrificing quality. As the pandemic developed and changed the live sports production model,Greenlight Television found a like-minded partner in CP, and one that had the appropriate remote production knowledge, infrastructure and experience.

“We do a lot of live streamed events for clients with a range of budgets, and simply cabling cameras to optimise redundancy can quickly escalate costs, let alone using a full production truck,” said Lauren Roberts, Director, Greenlight Television. “We made the commitment to invest in bonded cell technology, and CP Communications were instrumental in helping us implement that new technology. The success of the live On Board Camera systems deserve a special mention and CP’s assistance in developing them was invaluable”.

CP Communications established its RHS brand in 2018 to evolve live content acquisition, while strengthening convergence with Remote Integration Model (REMI) production techniques. The RHS unit houses CP’s own content acquisition systems, along with third-party products, including Mobile Viewpoint (MVP) live encoding, bonding and web streaming solutions. Leveraging 12 MVP Agile Airlink encoders for six in-car systems, four fixed camera positions, a roaming pit and podium camera and a drone, the small local crew captured the fast-paced action live in HD. All content was delivered to Greenlight’s remote production studio on the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea, with CP Communications providing real-time production support from its distributed network operations center (NOC). The live cut feed was sent back to the commentators at the track, the commentary streamed back to the Isle of Man and voice and graphics were added to the final live stream, all with a latency of only 1.6 seconds.

“The traditional production approach for this kind of event would require a mobile production truck, an RF unit, and a seemingly endless amount of fiber, technicians and production equipment onsite,” emphasized CP Communications CEO, Kurt Heitmann. “Working with partners like Greenlight, who embrace the REMI model, substantially reduces costs. The next generation of live event television is here and it delivers cost-effective acquisition with remote management, and the ability to make the entire content chain far more efficient.”

From its Isle of Man production studio, Greenlight live-streamed the race, driver interviews and other content direct to consumers over multiple platforms (including Facebook and YouTube) using Vimeo’s Livestream Studio 6 platform. Greenlight used a Unity intercom system to communicate with on-location crew and engineers at CP’s Canadian NOC, where the Airlink servers were controlled using MVP’s LinkMatrix management portal.

“From Nova Scotia we consistently optimised all Airlink encoding and multiplexing settings based on local conditions, assisted with stream routing, and provided continuity checks as Airlinks came online for each race,” said Allen Harris, Lead IP and Bonded Cellular Technologist for CP Communications. “The NOC

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reduced the workload in Greenlight’s control room, removing any concerns about backhauling signals so that they could concentrate on producing great content.”

Lauren emphasised that the end-to-end production workflow and technical infrastructure helped them substantially reduce headcount compared the ‘traditional way’ they produce events.

“We typically have a large crew for these kinds of events, and we reduced that to number to 10 on site for the Trans Am Series,” she said. “That’s a massive reduction in labor costs, and a far more efficient process for setup and breakdown.

We will all definitely admit to being a little nervous about the implementation of our idea, but CP helped us every step of the way and we’re delighted with the results and excited for the future!” www.cpcomms.com www.greenlight.tv

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KICK OFF

GLOBE LIFE FIELD LAWO The start of Major League Baseball’s 2020 season may have been delayed by the pandemic, but the debut of Globe Life Field, the Texas Rangers’ new stadium in Arlington, was right on time. July 24, Opening Day, marked the culmination of three years’ planning and construction with its inaugural broadcast.

An impressive structure with seating for more than 40,000 fans, the new ballpark includes three massive LED videoboards, digital home-plate signage, and a ribbon board measuring nearly 1,000 feet long.

But what the fans can’t see is just as exciting as what’s on the field: the league’s first full-IP control room, complete with HDR capability. At the beating heart of the Rangers’ new facility are leading-edge video routing, processing and broadcast control systems supplied by German IP-video and audio specialists, Lawo, and integrated by their partners, Diversified Systems of Dallas, Texas.

The video routing system in Globe Life’s new nerve center is built using Lawo’s V_matrix platform, a scalable software-defined hardware system designed around ST2110-10/20/30/40, ST20226/-7, ST2042 (VC-2), and AES67 open standards. Native IP cores with very high signal density, V_matrix frames host multiple C100 processing blades that run ‘virtual module’ applications to provide video and audio processing, video conversion and streaming and more. Most noticeable is the state-of-the-art vm_ dmv multiviewer, Lawo’s distributed 4K system that can display SDI (4K, 3G, HD, SD) and IP (ST2022-6, ST2110) signals for both sources and heads, supporting high-density mosaic layouts of up to 64 PiPs per 3G head and 128 PiPs per UHD head. Flexible and scalable, more heads can be added at will by loading another vm_dmv instance on a C100 blade. Multiviewer screens are built with Lawo ‘theWALL’ software, an intuitive drag-and-drop wall builder app that gives producers and operators the ability to

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quickly change monitor wall layouts on-the-fly. Built with HTML5 for OS-independence, theWALL can be deployed on any modern touchscreen device from widescreen monitor to portable tablet.

To provide unified control of the variety of broadcast equipment employed at Globe Life Field, Lawo VSM IP broadcast control software is employed. A manufacturer-agnostic control system, VSM, provides the ability to control products from multiple third-party manufacturers along with sophisticated redundancy features to ensure continuous mission-critical operation. VSM features include a built-in scheduler for pre-programmed routing and systemwide parameter changes, integration with automation and scheduling systems, and real-time status monitoring of attached devices with automatic routing based on specific alarm status or logic detection. Multiple VSM key panels and vsmWebPanel software controls are employed through the installation.

“We’re certainly happy to be a part of the technology that powers this beautiful new stadium,” said Ari Klingman, Lawo’s Director of Project Management, North America. “The operational highlight of both the VSM and V_matrix systems installed at Globe Life Field is that they give our customers a uniform on-site experience and workflow. Their engineering teams have one hardware platform to learn and support, and the modularity of the standards-based IP systems offers a wide range of flexible design opportunities and the ability to easily expand in the future. Those two things together are a very powerful package that will serve the Texas Rangers for many seasons to come.” www.lawo.com

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KICK OFF

KONA 4 AND GEN 10 AJA Audience engagement has never been more crucial for sports and entertainment providers than in today’s digital age.

With modern consumers favouring personalised, interactive experiences across digital platforms and devices, augmented reality (AR) is quickly emerging as a preferred storytelling tool in the live production community. Ahead of this trend, the technology trailblazers at Quidich Innovation Labs, developed an innovative drone-based AR production solution to service a range of clients across sports and entertainment, from the Indian Premier League to the Men’s Hockey World Cup and beyond.

Harnessing industry-standard hardware like the AJA KONA 4 video and audio I/O card, and GEN10 HD/SD sync generator in its system, the Mumbai, India-based outfit delivers memorable, interactive experiences for audiences that generate repeat business among clients.

“When we started Quidich, drone technology was relatively nascent and a rare commodity in India, with most aerial cinematography captured via helicopter. We saw an opportunity to use this technology to make live production from the sky much more affordable and efficient, and got down to business, developing drone systems to capture aerial footage of cities, arenas, stadiums and more,” shared Rahat Kulshreshtha, founder and CEO, Quidich. “Then AR technology emerged onto the scene, which we knew could add a whole new dimension to live production, and we saw our next big evolution.”

‘Spatio,’ the drone-based AR production solution that the team at Quidich developed, allows them to build graphics for

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live broadcast that can interact with the movement of drone cameras in the air. For each client production, cameras affixed to drones capture aerial footage in 1080i full HD, which is sent to a base station on the ground and then to a studio. There, the video footage is ingested into three workstations using AJA KONA cards, and fed through a Vizrt graphics system, where the Quidich team adds AR effects in real-time to enhance storytelling for the game. The final output is sent to the control room and then directly distributed to audiences across the globe. The AJA Software Development Kit (SDK) allows Spatio to integrate the output into its real-time workflow and the AJA GEN10 provides sync, so that all of the video signals can be genlocked.

Consistency is essential to all of Quidich’s productions, which can be challenging when they’re covering multiple matches simultaneously. “We’re often deploying multiple kit at the same time and pride ourselves in ensuring a quality standard,” added Rahat. “Our AJA gear has a large role to play in that; we can always count on it to keep our systems running smoothly and our production quality consistent, even when working with different teams across wide ranging geographies.”

He concluded: “On top of these advantages, the AJA SDK is accessible and intuitive, which makes our day-to-day much easier, plus AJA’s support team is extremely reliable. They’re responsive and quick to resolve any issues in a timely fashion, and there’s nothing more valuable than that in the live production business.” www.aja.com

KICK OFF

SONY PS5 SUPERCOPPA ITALIANA MOVICOM Movicom was contracted as a services provider for one of the most expected football tournaments – the Sony PS5 Supercoppa Italiana 2021, taking place on January 20.

This year, the company was asked to provide a Robyline point-topoint system to fly overhead the football pitch. Italian audience warmly welcomed a new way to show a football match using shots typical to football video games. Robyline was used mostly for the match replays, “And the last one was wonderful!” said Popi Bonnici, the Lega Serie A Italian football director. Robyline is a classic point-to-point robotic cable camera. Fast acceleration and high speed of 16 m/s make it a great solution for picturesque panoramic shots and dynamic high-speed coverage. The new

system is built around Movicom´s modern direct-drive R3 gyrostabilised headline. Video and data transmission is delivered via RF with no signal loss even at very long distances. The Motion Control System software that runs the model allows operators to record camera movements, then reproduce and even adjust these recorded flying paths. The new system is quicker to rig, which is very much appreciated by Mapei Stadium - Città del Tricolore, as the rigging of the full set-up was accomplished in just one day.

Distinguished for the polecam services, the Italian team was invited to provide behind-the-goal cameras with its standard polecam kit. A regular equipment pack consists of an Antelope Ultra or Nano camera, a small gyro-stabilised head Robyhead XS (developed by Movicom), and fiber-optic converters Movilink (developed by Movicom) with antelope OCP on the OB-van.

Additionally, Movicom staff provided Digital Overlay services in partnership with AIM SPORT - the virtual advertising technology and solutions developer. Movicom’s service included the operational process of the AIM Sport services in terms of technical, engineering, and production supervision. The competitive advantage of such technology offers a possibility to diversify digital ads for multiple broadcasters and make them specifically matched towards geographic or demographic market segments. www.movicom.tv

RAYMOND JAMES STADIUM ROSS VIDEO The team at Van Wagner Productions has been at the production helm of the NFL’s showcase weekend for more than three decades, running the in-game production and giving fans a memorable entertainment experience to complement the action on the field. The Super Bowl LV edition was no different, although the global COVID pandemic has obviously changed the nature of the event. A reduced capacity of 24,000 fans watchied the game inside the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, and 7,500 of these were vaccinated health workers who have been given free tickets by the NFL as a thank you for their work throughout the pandemic.

Raymond James Stadium is the home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, long-time Ross Video customers. The venue’s production team, BucsVision, have grown with the Ross Unified Venue Control Solution over the years and, together with Van Wagner and Ross, added even more production horsepower for the championship game. The venue’s control room features the flagship Acuity production switcher, as well as several XPression Studio engines, which are used for insert graphics. On the LED control side, XPression Tessera drove the main and corner displays, and the DashBoard control system synced all elements of the production together for jaw-dropping takeover elements.

In addition to the already powerful production system, PIERO Broadcast and PIERO Live was added for replay analysis, as well as virtual Down & Distance lines. The Voyager graphics rendering solution (powered by the Unreal engine from Epic Games) along with ACID cameras, Furio robotic camera heads, and the LUCID Studio control system delivered Augmented Reality (AR) graphics displaying scoring drives and other Next Gen stats content for fans in attendance. The stadium also added LED screens that covered the first 10 rows of seats around the stadium. The 360º seat cover displays are fed by additional XPression Tessera engines that tie seamlessly into the existing system.

“Through these very tough times in the world, it is always nice to be able to rely on a partner who not only shares your vision to put on a world class event every year, but also shares the creativity, work ethic and passion for what we do and how we want to entertain this very special crowd this year,” noted Bob Becker, Van Wagner’s Executive Vice President. Ryan Kehn, Creative Director at Van Wagner, agrees. “Each year at this event we try to push the envelope and show the crowd something they’ve never seen before, and this year was no different. We know that we can trust the Ross team to help us execute our vision and provide a unique experience befitting of the biggest game on earth.”

Kevin Cottam, Vice President of Sports & Live Events at Ross, was again delighted to be involved in this prestigious event. “We’re very proud and humbled to work with Van Wagner Productions, who are the ‘go to’ production partners for some of the world’s most prestigious sporting events.” www.rossvideo.com

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ROCKET MORTGAGE FIELDHOUSE Cleveland, USA Images: LG, Crescent Digital

R

ocket Mortgage FieldHouse, a multi-purpose, public sports and entertainment venue in Cleveland, Ohio that serves as home court for the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, recently transformed its 25-year-old infrastructure into a cutting-

edge facility. The transformation included over 750 digital displays from LG Business Solutions USA, and a state-of-the-art JBL sound system that ensures every attendee can see and hear the action at all times from every seat in the house and throughout the venue’s expanded gathering areas and concourses.

Heading up this project was Cleveland-based AV integration firm, Crescent Digital. Having already established a great relationship with the Cleveland Cavaliers, working with the team for almost 20 years, the company was familiar with every corner of the stadium, making it a great asset to the regeneration project. This particular project proves that cities and organisations can potentially save hundreds of millions of dollars by renovating existing sports and entertainment venues instead of building brand new ones. Digital displays and integrated audio technology can play a significant role in these projects, as they have as part of the transformation of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

“Through the efforts and investments of the team, working in collaboration with the city of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County, and the hard work of our design and installation professionals, Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is now a state-of-the-art, high tech arena that delivers an unforgettable fan experience,” said Crescent Digital CEO Mike Heines.

Crescent Digital worked closely with Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse’s CTO, Mike Conley, who was the real ‘inventor’ of the stadium’s solution and design. The primary focus was on regeneration and turning the old arena into a new arena that would set the bar for stadiums of the future.

Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse benefits from an incredible location in downtown Cleveland, and the project was a cooperative venture between the ownership of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the gateway economic development district, which supports projects such as this in the city.

“From the beginning, we and the team at the stadium felt that the best idea would be to take the existing arena with its great location and

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structure and just remodel it, modernise it and turn it into

was important, too, as the system had to be able to alert all

a special landmark in the city,” explained Mike. “From a

attendees to any emergencies within the building quickly and

technology perspective, that really starts with the initiation

easily,” furthered Mike.

of the architecture and the system design. It’s not necessarily

“We also had to look at the Cavaliers general offices, which

a quick and easy process and we worked for a good two years

are located inside the stadium, and configure the audio in

pre to the project being finished to design a great sound and

their conferences rooms, office and executive spaces. So, it

video system that would really put the stadium on the map.”

was a totally unique design overall on all of the various audio

When designing the sound system, the team at Crescent

products and audio solutions that went into the arena, not

Digital had to focus on a number of different zones around

just for the games and the events that will be held inside the

the stadium that required varying SPLs. The stadium consists

arena, but for everything else that came with it.”

of suites, VIP boxes, drinking / dining areas, as well as the

For the sound system, the team specified JBL loudspeakers, a

concourse and main seating areas, all of which had to be

popular and cost-effective brand within stadia. The products

taken into consideration. “The audio present in the suites

were perfect for Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse as they provided

had to be different to the concourse, and we were wary of

a wide range of solutions for audio conferencing, and fulfilled

background music spilling out into the game day areas.

the difficult needs of the system design within the court.

There was so much to think about as you also had club

Crescent Digital installed 700 JBL in ceiling and pendant

level spaces, which had to have club level sound. That was

loudspeakers throughout the entire stadium to ensure it had

extremely necessary for the premium suite holders. Security

a really high level of consistent sound quality.

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“We also selected leading edge audio and audio processing

the main course. The goal there was to make sure fans never

products by BSS, Crown, JBL and Shure because a project of

missed a moment of the action, whether it’s previous game

this magnitude calls for the best equipment on the market,”

highlights before tip-off, live game footage or post game

furthered Mike.

clips as you leave. Wayfinding was also an important aspect

No matter where a visitor is inside the FieldHouse, the LG

of the installation. Our goal was to make it feasible that

digital displays provide wayfinding information; live feeds of

regardless of where a patron is located in the fieldhouse,

the game, concert or convention; event-specific messaging,

they’ll always know the nearest restroom, concession or exit.

marketing and sponsor messages; and easy-to-read menus

“The concession stands themselves were a focus, too. The

for restaurants and food and beverage stands.

thought was if we improved the communication of available

“We conducted the design process with a number of goals

food items, that would entice customers to spend more

in mind,” explained Dan Smith Vice President, Business

money in the concession areas. Finally, we upgraded the

Development at LG Business Solutions USA. “The first goal

displays in each arena suite. We wanted premium guests to

was to entertain and engage customers from the moment

be able to view game replays in more detail and in a larger

they arrived on property. That said, Crescent deployed a

format.”

number of LG screens throughout the arena entrance. Each

The venue’s main concourse has a ring of 150 49-inch

screen displays real-time player and team statistics, league

displays that wrap the entire perimeter and can be used

information and more.

individually or together to present any type of content the

“Once inside, you’ll see many LG displays littered throughout

occasion calls for. In fact, every display in the FieldHouse,

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both indoors and outdoors, is connected to a single IPTV

to use those same displays at all concession stands.

distribution system that enables quick changes and

“Having the right partners on a project of this scale and

automated scheduling of the enormous display network. This

complexity is critical,” said Mike Conley. “Our partners at

level of control enabled the venue to create a new experience

Crescent Digital combined with the LG team made a big

for the national anthem, where the entire display network

difference and helped create a vision and a solution that

goes dark in a ‘blackout mode’, then comes on instantly

takes our technology and fan experience to the highest

when the song finishes.

level possible. Everyone kept that in mind as solutions were

As happens in any renovation project, Crescent Digital

created, while developing efficiencies at the same time. A

encountered some space constraints and infrastructure

true win-win-win equation.”

limitations that required creative thinking and custom

With a height of just 14-inches, the specialised ultra-stretch

designs to overcome. At one concession stand, plans called

displays were also the perfect product for the Cavaliers locker

for digital displays to be mounted above the entire stand,

room, where five of the displays sit side-by-side to create a

covering its full length so every visitor can see the menu

ticker-like canvas that presents gameday-related media. The

options from any location. Due to limited wall space from the

same displays also grace the ticket office, where they provide

stand to the ceiling, the team realised that the only workable

information to guests in line.

solution was to install LG’s unique 86-inch Ultra-Stretch

“Throughout the entirety of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse,

displays side-by-side, effectively forming an ultra-wide

Crescent Digital was able to achieve every goal and meet

video wall above the stand. After that, the decision was made

every expectation with a diverse array of LG digital displays,”

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said Evan Peterson, Senior Account Manager for LG Business

digital signage, as we’ve done for the Cavaliers, can create

Solutions USA. “The FieldHouse is a testament to what can

something just as new and exciting - at a fraction of the cost

be achieved through hard work and forward-thinking project

of rebuilding. To put this in perspective, this project cost a

leadership, and it paves the way for other venues around

couple of million dollars to complete versus the estimated 100

the globe to create efficiencies by renovating and updating

million needed to initially construct the fieldhouse.

facilities and technologies.”

“Sports are inherently a visual experience and the Cavaliers

The FieldHouse also upgraded displays in its premium

are now able to deliver an engaging visual environment

guest spaces, such as areas for season ticket holders, with

with heightened emotional and intellectual fan engagement,

six LG video walls in 4x2, 2x2 and 3x3 configurations. Each

without moving locations or tearing down their original

video wall is comprises multiple 49-inch or 55-inch high

building. The number of screens installed in arenas and

brightness displays with ultra-slim bezels (.88mm bezel-

stadiums has exploded in recent years. It used to be a few

to-bezel). Additionally, each suite has three LG displays

hundred now many installations boast a few thousand. The

connected to the IPTV network, which guests can control to

goal of this increase is to continue connecting fans to the

view cable programming.

action, wherever they are. Aiding in that goal are several

Dan continued: “LG provides the right solutions for the

significantly larger, more immersive display formats.

project, whether it’s a renovation or an entirely new arena.

“It’s also important to note the rise of LED in sports settings.

You don’t always have to knock down an existing space

There was a time when a stadium’s only LED signage was the

to significantly improve the fan experience. Integrating

scoreboard. Today, modern sports arenas and stadiums are

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immersed in a variety of LED signage use cases.”

we hope operators will look to this project as a beacon of

As most stadiums still navigate their way through the

what can be achieved by including cutting-edge technology

challenges thrown at them by the COVID-19 pandemic, the

and displays as part of the larger renovation plan.”

use of video boards, such as the ones installed in Rocket

“The stadium is a real credit to the management team and

Mortgage FieldHouse, will become imperative in making

the brilliant staff. It is one of the most well managed event

sure operations are running safely and smoothly, as venues

arenas I have ever worked on. You don’t particularly see

start to reopen their doors. “As we see venues starting to

Cleveland as a typical destination point for concert venues

remodel and repurpose their arenas, after having time during

or public corporate events, but Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse

this pandemic to reflect on how they run their businesses,

has confirmed that it truly is. It’s a central jewel of the city

I think we will definitely see people using video boards in

and also one that is extremely well thought of throughout the

very unique ways. There’s the ability for both fan and player

United States and the world. It’s now well equipped with next

engagement, as well as being an extremely useful tool for

level audio and video technology, too, that is bound to take

health and safety - something all of us are going to have to

the game-day experience to the highest level,” concluded

take into consideration over the next few years,” said Mike.

Mike.

“Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse has integrated so much visual technology throughout the arena, no fan or visitor will ever have to miss a big layup or their favourite song because they had to visit the restroom or wanted to buy a beverage,” said Evan. “Now, when large event venues approach the end of their displays’ life cycles or consider infrastructure upgrades,

BRAND: LG, JBL Pro, Crown, BSS, Shure | INSTALLER: Crescent Digital | WEBSITES: www.lg.com, www.jblpro.com, www.crownaudio.com, www.bssaudio.com, www.shure.com 034

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NEW

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05/02/2021 14:39

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WWE THUNDERDOME Orlando, USA Images: The Famous Group, Screenworks

A

s the coronavirus pandemic and a host of governmentregulated safety mandates swept the nation in 2020, event planners, venue professionals and broadcasters were forced to redefine best practices for hosting

live events, while ensuring the safety and wellbeing of talent and audiences in large gathering spaces. Event producers were especially challenged with finding a new medium to connect with and engage target audiences. As public safety regulations tightened in the midst of the pandemic, venues began experimenting with a wide range of solutions to overcome the unprecedented obstacles they faced.

Producers quickly exhausted early audience simulation efforts with minimal success, including reduced-capacity ticketing, piping virtual crowd noise into venues, cardboard ‘spectator’ cutouts to fill vacant seats, and inserting fans into venues digitally via augmented reality. Finally, though, through a series of trial and error, the single standout solution that has revived live events, and proven more effective and authentic than any other – the ‘virtual fan experience’ – was born.

The industry veterans at World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE), were among the first to rise to the challenge and tackle this solution head-on with the debut of its revolutionary ThunderDome virtual fan experience, which premiered during Friday Night SmackDown at the Amway Center in August 2020. WWE’s bold choice to fill the arena with 1,000 virtual fans remains one of the largest and most successful use cases to date, having successfully created an elaborate, immersive experience that captures the essence of its popular live shows.

Following is television debut, the WWE ThunderDome was an instant hit, as Kevin Dunn, WWE Executive Vice President of Television Production, explained further: “WWE has a long history of producing the greatest live spectacles in sports and

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entertainment, yet nothing compares to what we are creating

versions of virtual fans were little more than set dressing, the

with WWE ThunderDome.

virtual fan experience has evolved into a suite of services and

“This structure will enable us to deliver an immersive

products that includes thousands of concurrent livestreams,

atmosphere and generate more excitement amongst the

tiered seating, complex LED and graphical layouts, tiered

millions of fans watching our programming around the

moderation and, most importantly, low-latency video feeds

world.”

for fans to truly react in real time. Key to the success of this

Tasked with designing a robust, large-scale virtual fan

product has been combining the low-latency of traditional

experience, producers at The Famous Group called on

video conferencing services, with the level of graphic control

their long-time technical partners at Quince Imaging and

and audience management required for a live production.

renowned cloud infrastructure experts, Frozen Mountain,

Bringing the virtual fan experience display system together

to develop a premium, custom solution for WWE, scalable

was a complex technological feat, with WWE’s most

enough to be deployed in professional sporting arenas

dedicated fans streaming in from all around the world,

worldwide. The WWE’s world-class solution was conceived

while simultaneously keeping WWE and technical partners

through large-scale installation of the most sophisticated

connected throughout the broadcast, all while adhering to

high-resolution LED screens, populated edge to edge with

strategic planning guidelines in compliance with COVID-19

WWE fans.

regulations. Deploying a combination of cloud-based control,

The infrastructure created a larger-than-life virtual audience

SRT video transport technology, and remote intercom

mosaic consisting of 1,000 live fans, each streaming into

systems, made it possible for the majority of the game-

the broadcast from their own home, transcending time

day operations staff to work off-site. With moderators,

zones and geographical boundaries throughout the world in

producers, and support staff working remotely, local team

real time. As with traditional live events, virtual audience

members were able to monitor the real-time render engines

members were able to cheer on and engage with their favorite

on premise while adhering to proper social distancing

entertainers as their on-air participation was filmed live

protocols.

throughout the broadcast.

Quince Imaging’s Director of Innovation, Eric Gazzillo,

The virtual fan experience concept has grown rapidly over the

added: “The streaming industry is a crowded market, so it

past year in both prevalence and sophistication. While early

was imperative that we distinguish our virtual fan experience

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technology as a suite of products and services that provides

Kevin furthered: “It gives that live interaction between the

event producers with the reliable elements of control they’ve

fans and the WWE superstars that make the shows so special.

come to expect in traditional live events. Geographical

This virtual audience solution has changed everything – it’s

flexibility for clients, producers and fans, technical

not just one big Zoom call. The team has recognised frequent

scalability, graphical adaptability, and moderation controls

fans who dial in regularly, whole families get involved and

are all integral elements that provide a measure of control

it has really helped the WWE superstars keep the energy up.

and security unrivaled by any other product on the market.”

The possibilities for this are really endless and it could be

Central to the concept was the ability to allow fans to

used in so many other settings.”

experience the action up close and personal, bringing them

The WWE ThunderDome set includes 2,194 LED panels, with

into the arena via live video on huge LED screens – and it

a stunning 16 million pixels. In addition to the LED screens

was Screenworks, the video display solutions specialist,

used, over 30 projectors were added to achieve the result.

providing the innovative LED solution to help achieve this.

ROE Visual Carbon series CB5 and Magic Cube MC7 were used

“The intention was to give the WWE Universe via technology,

to create both the set, as well as the fan boards.

the most immersive experience that we could think of,”

With the immediacy of the COVID-19 lockdown meaning that

stated Duncan Leslie, Senior Vice President of Event Technical

the teams had to scramble to get the facility up and running

Operations at WWE.

quickly, it’s no surprise that the number one challenge as far

Screenworks, part of the NEP Worldwide Network, has

as Kevin was concerned was time. He revealed that, within

been working with the WWE for some two decades and,

just nine days from getting the original call, his team had

according to the company’s Vice President, Kevin Hoyle, it’s

fabricated, cleaned and installed everything in the Amway

a relationship that has been long and fruitful: “This isn’t

Center.

the only new challenge we have been thrown during our

“It was a big challenge, but there was a great camaraderie

relationship with WWE,” he began. “Our task has always

between all of the vendors and staff out there,” Kevin

been and will continue to be to support them however we can

reflected. “We all banded together. We sent out 24 guys from

during these difficult times.”

Screenworks to get it up and running. They just jumped in

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THE FULL PITCH

and everyone helped out.”

he and his team have put in to ensure that the crisis hasn’t

While health and safety is always a major consideration, the

meant a complete shutdown of all forms of entertainment.

current climate around COVID-19 meant that extra measures

“We are all craving entertainment right now for a little extra

were necessary to ensure the safety of everyone on site.

joy in our lives, and these types of virtual solutions can really

“ThunderDome is a completely sealed environment, which

help enhance productions, allowing audiences to connect

means that no one comes in without being COVID-19 tested,”

beyond just watching,” he concluded. “At Screenworks and

Kevin revealed. “Once you are inside the ThunderDome,

across NEP around the globe, we have really seen our staff

everyone is masked up, social distancing, the whole nine

digging in and innovating during this crisis. It has been really

yards. Also, consistency of crew is crucial to keeping the

great to see all the new virtual solutions our teams have come

bubble and keeping everyone healthy.”

up with, from virtual studios, to remote production, virtual

The Vice President thanked some key members of the team,

audience, and virtual events. We have really been trying to

including Project Managers, Neil Broome, Andre Nolan and

use this as a time to innovate.”

Jeff Hoyle; as well as techs, Jason Lowe, Shawn Wollard,

The numbers back up the success of WWE’s ThunderDome.

Matt Mueller, Eric Nickloy, Derrick Terveer, Jason Keyes,

There were a total of 500,000 registered fans, with 226 total

Andy Wlazewski, and Bradley Barrier. He also praised Show

countries and territories represented. Crucially, capacity

Designer, Jason Robinson, and Production Manager, Jeremy

was always at 100% for each show, with an impressive

Shand.

70% of virtual fans returning multiples times. It’s clear

“Jason is 100% responsible for everything designed on this

that, during these difficult times, there is a place for virtual

show – he is an amazing talent. He creates a larger-than-life

crowds, however, the exciting thing is that it’s opened up

visual experience and then gets it into a camera frame,” he

more opportunities for fans from all over the world, even

commented. “And Jeremy puts all of Jason’s ideas together,

when things return to normality. The virtual crowd may just

working with all of us vendors. They are both magic.”

become a permanent fixture for the sporting industry.

With the COVID-19 pandemic leaving an indelible mark on all live events this year, Kevin reflected on the hard work that

COMPANIES: Quince Imaging, The Famous Group, Frozen Mountain, Screenworks, ROE Visual | WEBSITES: www.quinceimaging.com, www.thefamousgroup.com, www.frozenmountain.com, www.screenworksnep.com, www.roevisual.com 042

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Redefining the Stadium Experience

16 VENUE FOCUS

AUDIO 046 Stade Saint-Symphorien | Metz, France

LIGHTING 052 Twickenham Stoop Stadium | Twickenham, England

HOSPITALITY 056 Ascot Racecourse | Ascot, England

AUDIO

STADE SAINTSYMPHORIEN Metz, France Images: Freevox

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pened in 1923, Stade Saint-Symphorien has been the home of FC Metz since the foundation of the club in 1938. Plans have been in place to expand the stadium for quite some time, and in May 2019, the renovation began, with a new south stand, as

well as an upgrade to the other three stands, bringing the total capacity to around 30,000.

Stade Saint-Symphorien’s new grandstand will be double-tiered and joined by two corner sections, which will be able to host 7,955 fans, including 136 wheelchair spaces and a premium section with anywhere between 2,239 and 4,500 seats, depending on demand.

The redeveloped stand will come with 15,400 sq metres of floor space, which will be divided up for commercial activity; hospitality; convention

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and banqueting infrastructure; co-working space; and FC

cleaner, with it being a single sound system – and that’s also

Metz facilities. When the new grandstand is complete, the

important visually. We were able to make this choice because

stadium will no longer boast its asymmetric layout, earning

Application Solutions Limited (ASL) has amplifiers with

a uniform silhouette. Finally, a new public plaza would be

technical characteristics that allow the comfort part to be

created in the south, streamlining crowd flow on event days.

managed by the same amplification.

In taking ownership of the stadium – one of only two French

“We already have experience with this type of installation, so

teams to do so – FC Metz are using it to develop the club,

it was not the first time and we were sure of its success. Of

boost its profile and bring in regular revenue. Currently,

course, the security system is totally EN 54-certified, too.”

the south stand development is almost complete, with the

All of the stands at Stade Saint-Symphorien are enhanced

three other stands to be upgraded with a new outer cladding.

using JBL All Weather loudspeakers, comprising 42 AW595-

The entire project is set to be finished by 2022, then, from

LS, 27 AW526-LS and 10 AW566-LS, plus 16 ASB7128

there, Stade Saint-Symphorien will be able to realise all of its

subwoofers and 39 CONTROL 25AV-LS loudspeakers

commercial potential, including the staging of large concerts.

for special area reinforcement. There are 11 AW566-LS

As part of the wider redevelopment, FC Metz also chose to

loudspeakers dedicated specifically to the field, too.

upgrade the stadium’s audio system in a bid to modernise

The sound system for the parts of the stadium under

its home ground and take it to the next level for fans. Audio

construction is already in place, with JBL Precision Directivity

installers, Produc’Son were tasked with the project, which led

loudspeakers offering even more performance. This section

to them contacting Freevox for a solution that would work.

includes four PD595-LS and two PD566-LS, along with two

Laurent Delenclos, Technical Director at Freevox, takes up

ASB7128 subwoofers. There are also 555 CONTROL 14C-VA

the story: “We didn’t have a specific brief, with the exception

ceiling loudspeakers and 98 CONTROL 25 AV-LS loudspeakers

of acoustic pressure targets, the STI required by the public

for the dressing rooms.

consultancy specifications and the loudspeaker locations

The ASL amplifier setup consists of 23 V2000 chassis,

imposed in relation to the architecture. We had the choice

equipped with 148 D500 amplifier modules with LSZDC

between two types of sound: separate (comfort and safety) or

monitoring interface, and four Crown DCI42400N amplifiers

mixed.

feeding the comfort sound reinforcement subwoofers. Also,

“The proposed design is a mixed security and comfort sound

for the dressing rooms, there are 10 V2000 amplifiers.

system. A sound system was set up with EN 54-certified

Laurent added: “We choose to have one amplifier per

loudspeakers from JBL and all EN54 electronics from ASL

loudspeaker to achieve the maximum desired power, but

Control, plus Crown amplifiers and JBL subwoofers. Also, the

also, thanks to the DSP in the ASL amplifier, an independent

design was done in Ease 4.4.

processor per loudspeaker, too.

“We chose the mixed security / comfort option that was much

“Four ASL VIPEDIA-12-Pro digital routers ensure the

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SOLUTIONS

CONTROL SYSTEMS

CHAIN HOISTS

•

•

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AUDIO

network protocol for security sound and in Dante for comfort

the installation as we go.

sound. The capacity of the ASL VIPEDIA to manage these two

“Obviously, we had to find the means to adapt to the

types of network allows us to design this mixed system of

COVID-19 situation, with all the restrictions and respect for

comfort and security.”

sanitary procedures – this meant everything was longer, the

There are two VIPEDIA-12-Pro routers for the dressing

accesses more complex and the work more restrictive for the

rooms and boxes. In the control room, the ASL security

teams.”

announcement system is composed of a VIPA-WS

While FC Metz’s home is still an evolving project, it’s safe to

touchscreen station; an MSP20 command keypad; an EMS-01

say that the audio system is ready as the club pushes itself to

emergency microphone station and a listening device; and

the next level with real ambition. The experience for the fans

a control unit consisting of two JBL 305P MKII proximity

will be improved considerably – and that has always been the

monitors.

main aim behind the upgrades at Stade Saint-Symphorien.

For the mixing console, an Allen & Heath SQ-7 is used, due

“The acoustic result is impeccable. We look forward to

to its quality and ideal cost in terms of the budget, with all

finalising the optimisation of the settings with the public,

the sound for each match day and event going through the

which is currently on hold due to the restrictions. But the

console.

result with an empty stadium is simply amazing – and the

With the project at Stade Saint-Symphorien being a unique

inaugural match was a complete success for the those lucky

and fairly complex one, it wasn’t without its challenges, as

enough to be able to attend,” said Laurent.

Pascal Rhiel, Director of Produc’Son, explained further: “One

Pascal concluded: “The realisation of the sound system

of the big challenges was to make the custom-made bumpers

for the FC Metz’s stadium was a real collective adventure.

under the frames of the tribunes. They were studied following

From the prescription to the final setting, we carried out the

the production of calculation notes validated by the design,

installation with great fluidity and in perfect serenity. I salute

and then manufactured. The installation took about seven

the unwavering work carried out by all the Produc’Son teams.

months, with a specific team for the loudspeaker installation

“The support and expertise of Laurent at Freevo made it

and cabling inside the tribunes, and another for the outside.

possible to keep all our commitments and to provide a

The entire cabling represents 32,000-metres of cable - we

sound quality that is very rare in this field – it’s worthy of

progressed level by level, with all the wiring done in full and

an excellent concert hall. And that’s a feeling widely shared

laying in the interiors as and when.

by our customers who see the future of the stadium on an

“With the stadium being expanded, its south stand has been

international scale.”

completely destroyed to be rebuilt as new, plus, the other renovated stands are in progress and we are progressing in

BRAND: JBL Pro, ASL, Crown, Allen & Heath | INSTALLER: Produc’Son | DISTRIBUTOR: Freevox | WEBSITES: www.jblpro.com, www.asl-control.co.uk, www.crownaudio.com, www. allen-heath.com, www.produc-son.fr, www.freevox.fr 050

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We know that it’s more important than ever for us to help you communicate with the industry. If you’d like your copy of MONDO | STADIA delivered to a different address, e-mail Laura at l.iles@mondiale.co.uk

LIGHTING

TWICKENHAM STOOP STADIUM London, England Images: Harlequins, Signify

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nglish Gallagher Premiership rugby union club, Harlequins, have become the first UK professional sports club – and the first in rugby – to install UV-C disinfection lighting at its home ground. In collaboration with Signify, the world leader

in lighting, Twickenham Stoop Stadium is now equipped for a safer future.

Signify’s UV-C Partner, Powercorm has installed 11 UV-C disinfection upper air units in the Honours Bar. This area at The Stoop is normally reserved for season ticket members, but currently serves as the home team players’ dressing room. Players will be the first to benefit from the new safety measures, with members also able to enjoy a safer and more hygienic atmosphere when the venue can once again open its doors to the public.

“Signify is a highly trusted partner and a leader in its field,” said Laurie Dalrymple, Chief Executive Officer, Harlequins. “We are proud to be the first professional sports team in the UK to use UV-C disinfection lighting technology, and we expect to see it widely utilised in future across the sports and events industry.”

Mike Lancaster, Harlequins’ Head of Medical, added: “Signify’s UV-C

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LIGHTING

disinfection lighting adds an additional layer of protection

rugby. Top athletes work hard to keep their health at an

to the stringent testing and operational processes we have in

absolute peak, which extends to managing the risks we

place to protect the squad. From a medical perspective, I am

all now face in crowded public places. We’re very proud to

very satisfied with the way the technology has been tested in

support the club’s objective to offer players and supporters

depth and fully proven.”

the very best protection,” said Andy Gowen, Director of

UV-C is a well-established method of disinfection, used

Public and Sports Lighting at Signify in the UK and Ireland.

to prevent the spread of diseases by disinfecting air,

Richard Grace, Managing Director at Powercor, added: “As a

water and surfaces. UV-C breaks down the DNA or RNA of

long-term partner of Signify, we are very pleased to extend

microorganisms, including viruses and bacteria, rendering

our professional expertise to UV-C disinfection lighting,

them harmless. In laboratory testing, Signify’s UV-C light

which will become increasingly important to our customers

sources reduced the SARS-CoV-2 virus infectivity on a

in the years ahead.

surface to below detectable levels in as few as nine seconds.

“We are proud to play our part in getting the Quins safely

Powercor installed 11 units suspended by brackets 800mm

to the pitch, and creating hygienic spaces for supporters

from the ceiling, with potential for more to be installed

to enjoy the legendary atmosphere of The Stoop once it is

in other parts of the stadium at a later date. This high

considered safe to re-open.”

position, in combination with the luminaires’ design, allows

For more than 35 years, Signify has been at the forefront of

the system to disinfect air as it circulates the room - even

UV technology, and has a proven track record of innovation

when there are people present. Natural convection moves

and strong application expertise in UV-C lighting. Signify’s

the disinfected air back into the lower part of the room.

UV-C lighting is designed, installed, and used according to

Additionally, shielding and optics in the luminaire’s design

the product-specific safety instructions, and manufactured

prevent accidental exposure to UV-C radiation.

using well-controlled industrial processes.

“Harlequins has a long history at the pinnacle of English

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HOSPITALITY

ASCOT RACECOURSE Ascot, England Images: Ascot Racecourse

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s COVID-19 restrictions relax and venues welcome spectators back, it will not be possible - without a series of extraordinary measures put in place - to make events safe and enjoyable again. In order to

provide fans with a seamless experience, venues first need to understand their priorities and preferences when returning to in-person events.

Alongside this - and perhaps most importantly - a full venue audit needs to be conducted to determine the operational changes required to ensure a safe experience for visitors.

This evaluation can then help determine the priorities for reopening and, where possible, to minimise touchpoints and limit crowd movement, something which Realife Tech can provide with efficient, expedited solutions that satisfy the everevolving nature of sports events in the current global pandemic.

Realife Tech is a London-based Experience Automation Platform working with leading venues including the SSE Arena, Wembley, Edgbaston Cricket Ground and the O2 Arena, assisting each venue with re-opening its doors to visitors and fans in the ‘new normal’ events landscape.

Most recently, Realife has been working with Ascot Racecourse, a venue boasting a rich history and tradition with its raceday experience. The venue has been in pursuit of a tech solution to help visitors enjoy their favourite aspects of a raceday, whilst minimising person-to-person contact. The solutions Realife offers enables venues to tackle major challenges, implementing

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cutting-edge systems to limit crowd movement and make

and beverage offers or VIP upgrade packages.

transactions as contact-free as possible, with it’s mobile

The industry has also seen that the ability to implement these

app being the exclusive method of ordering food and drinks.

simple changes has been proven to drive strong results. The

Enabling table delivery in premium areas limits contact with

SSE Arena opened to 1,000 fans for the Anthony Joshua vs

other guests and food service personnel, reducing face-to-

Kubrat Pulev Heavyweight Boxing match in December 2020.

face interaction and providing a solution for a traditionally

By mandating that food and beverage orders had to take place

high-touch area.

through the app, they saw an increase in spend per head of

Another change across the industry will be the shift away

25% in comparison to a boxing match where fans could order

from paper ticketing to a digital-only approach, which allows

concessions at the counter.

venues to create a frictionless ticketing journey, as tickets are

Operationally, app-ordering also gives venues the ability

delivered to the attendee’s phone and can be shared digitally

to limit crowd movement. With a limited capacity event,

with friends or companions. Visitors can then enter the venue

Ascot can now offer table service to customers, and this

with zero touchpoints, eliminating the need to pass paper

can be scaled to match rising capacity numbers by utilising

tickets from person-to-person.

the ‘Collect when Ready’ ordering services for Grandstand

Additionally, by mandating that tickets are shared in-app,

admission areas, so that customers can track their in-app

venues can begin a journey of data capture for each individual

orders, visiting the collection point only once the order is

attendee. This profile of each visitor can then be used to offer

ready, which limits queues and unnecessary crowds near

them a better experience, in the form of personalised food

concessions.

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George Vaughan, Head of Technology at Ascot Racecourse,

way of working for 1711 by Ascot, the racecourse’s hospitality

said: “We were looking for a dynamic solution that could

partner, driving a safer, more convenient, and more

be adapted to the specific needs of our customers, whilst

streamlined process as attendee capacity increases through

assisting us to meet the strict pandemic guidelines for safe

the year. Discovering a solution that is able to operate

entry to a venue. Working with the team here at Ascot,

seamlessly across multiple stages of reopening and that could

Realife was able to deliver a solution in record time that met

be ready to implement in such a quick end-to-end timeframe

all of our requirements.

is integral to our customer experience strategy.”

“As Ascot was set to reopen its doors in December 2020, we

George concluded: “With this new platform from Realife

worked with Realife Tech to get efficient, expedited solutions

Tech, we’re able to usher in safer protocols to increase our

up and running in under two weeks. Unfortunately, as new

visitors’ confidence in returning to their favourite events; as

restrictions were implemented only a few days before our

we now have the ability to communicate order status updates

December raceday, we had to put everything on hold, but

to customers in real-time, and to adapt the ordering journey

we now have a solution that is ready for the moment we can

across table service and click and collect.”

welcome spectators back on site.

“This streamlined process of mobile ordering drives a new

BRAND: Realife Tech | WEBSITES: www.realifetech.com

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INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS SUMMIT 2021 A virtual Campus of networking workshops You choose which workshops deliver the best value for you

21-22 April

2020 was the year of content

But people are bored with the old style virtual conference

2021 is the year of connectivity

Time for some innovative thinking and something different...

- Share the solutions that you are currently providing to venues - Have a conversation with those venues to understand their challenges & potential solutions - Gain access to key decision makers within sports federations & venues - Grow your brand profile among the key decision makers by sponsoring the summit or a workshop A choice of venue-oriented workshops is available on either the 21st or 22nd April, curated in partnership with:

We are confirming a number of key venues.

Already confirmed are: Valencia FC

Olympiapark Munchen

AELTC

BC Zalgiris Kaunas & Zalgirio

+44 (0) 20 7709 2350 • summit@majoreventsint.com

16 EXTRA TIME

VENUE TECH DIRECTORY 062 Latest Tech For Sporting Venues

FULL TIME 064 MAG Audio | Company Profile

EVENT DIARY 066 Conferences & Exhibitions

VENUE TECH DIRECTORY A closer look at some of the latest, state-of-the-art technology for sporting venues.

SAM-Q PLATFORM TSL PRODUCTS www.tslproducts.com • • • • •

Monitors loudness using eight independent loudness probes.

Option for a pin-code, which can allow engineers to restrict what operators can access and change.

Ability to use an ‘offline’ application to remotely configure all aspects of the device.

Capability to change the devices’ behaviour, so it can fit into a new system and adapt to workflow.

Compatible with existing SDI-based systems, as well as AES and MADI.

CV420-30X MARSHALL www.marshall-usa.com • • • • •

PANOMERA DALLMEIER www.dallmeier.com/panomera-s • • • • •

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Only one camera for every 2,000 seats.

Court-proof in every corner.

Highest ROI. Future-proof video analytics.

Currently in operation at 14 Premier League clubs.

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Professional grade 8.5-megapixel Sony 4K sensor.

Up to UHD (3840x2160p) resolution at 60fps delivers crystal clear video.

Long 30x zoom range expands effective reach from ultra-wide (4mm) to telephoto (135mm).

Simultaneous output options through SDI, HDMI, and/or IP with onecable to camera setup.

Flexible IP formats available with HEVC, Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) and NDI®.

VENUE TECH DIRECTORY

C1 ULTRA 750KG – 4M/MIN CHAINMASTER GMBH www.chainmaster.de • • •

•

Safe and reliable electric chain hoist for installation work or complex scene changes.

ULTRA safe product with safety factor 8:1 (dynamic) according to EN17206.

Great range of standard features, including; incremental encoder; load measuring shackle; low-noise brake with brake gap monitoring; thermal sensor and more.

Special designs according to customer requirements on request.

HVL SERIES RCF www.rcf.it • • • • •

Designed for American football stadiums, as well as other large venues and events.

All modules embed RCF Precision Transducers, horns, and waveguides for optimal coverage and clarity.

All transducers feature neodymium magnetic circuits, radically new voice coil ventilation systems, and ground-breaking voice coil assemblies.

Reduces the commissioning time on new projects with HVL’s modular array-ability, multiple directivity indexes (Q), and small footprint.

Customisation and colour options available to suit any unique environment.

SKYDECK IA STAGE www.skydeckgrid.com • •

• • •

Clean walking surface, eliminating trip hazards.

Engineered for very low weight-to-strength ratio. Its patented design makes it lighter than traditional tension wire grid systems, meaning less support steel and less cost overall.

Easily configurable - these grids are designed for use in any area where unimpeded light, sound, or air flow is desired.

Rapid Installation - no ‘runner’ or sub-frame construction is required.

SkyDeck’s unique design maximises cable life and strength.

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FULL TIME

MAG AUDIO During MAG Audio’s 20 year history, the company has created its own unique approach to the development of its products, assembled a professional team of experts, and garnered a considerable experience in the fields of loudspeaker engineering, design and sound system installations. It is also no stranger to the world of stadia, with many of its products proving imperative in sports’ sound systems across the globe. www.mag-audio.com ne of MAG Audio’s most recent projects, ‘Kolos’, is a newly renovated home stadium of the Ukrainian Premier League football club of the same name, located in Kovalivka (Kyiv District), Ukraine. It was reconstructed in 2020 in order to meet the 3d category criteria of UEFA standards. Among other upgrades, Kolos was equipped with a new cutting-edge sound system from MAG Audio.

As a triumpher of Ukrainian championships, Kolos FC now represents Ukraine in UEFA Europa League season 2020-21. However, the club’s home stadium in Kovalivka had to be renovated to meet UEFA standards.

Originally built in 2014, ‘Kolos’ could hold up to 950 people. After reconstruction, this number increased to 5,000. But, this is certainly not the only upgrade; the stadium also got a new press box, VIP box, press conference room and a brand new sound system from MAG Audio.

Field Series loudspeakers from MAG were designed for stadiums, sports arenas and other large open air venues. This sound system can turn every sports location into a multifunctional place.

“We recommend MAG FD-52 as primary sound, these horn-loaded coaxial loudspeakers are perfect for large sports arenas and stadiums.

MAG FD-52 has great sensitivity, focussed sound and long throw, and delivers excellent speech intelligibility. Moreover, the systems have IP55 weather resistance,” commented Igor Sydorenko, Systems Engineer at MAG Audio.

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To provide even sound coverage at the field and the stands, MAG engineers simulated sound coverage in the AFMG EASE software.

“We decided to install for MAG FD-52 at the camera operating platform, on the rooftop of the administrative building. This way we covered the main stand, the field and two stands behind the gates. The opposite stand required additional sound sources, so we installed 15 MAG AIR-62 IP along the shed,” added Igor.

The AIR Series has been recently updated with the weather-resistant IP54 option, now it’s available in black and white colours.

For Kolos Stadium, black AIR-62 IP with white grid were customised with Kolos FC logo.

Additionally six MAG AIR-62 IP, connected to Powersoft Mezzo 604AD, were installed in three VIP lounges. Main FD-52s are connected to Powersoft Quattrocanali 4804 DSP+D amplifier and Powersoft Quattrocanali 2404 DSP+D drives 15 x MAG AIR-62 IP. Entire sound system is connected via Dante.

MAG Audio has also recently presented the MAG MUST technology, the state-of-the-art solution that ruins stereotypes of providing sound at venues of various sizes and formats.

The technology is based on the scalable line array MAG WASP, which has already proved itself in both small venues, such as bars and restaurants, and large sporting events, too. The MAG MUST technology (short for ‘Multiple Uniform Sound Technology’) allows for the creation of uniform sound coverage everywhere, even including

stadiums.

The MAG MUST presentation took place at the biggest arena of Ukraine NSC Olimpiyskiy as part of the preparation for the next day’s grand stadium festival.

MUST is an innovative solution not only in the context of technology, but also in its effectiveness. Today, rental companies have to adapt to the requirements of each specific venue with the help of audio equipment of proper format. With scalable MAG MUST technology, this problem is solved, as you can provide sound at any event just by changing the layout and the number of loudspeakers. It is also a big plus for logistics and equipment storage.

Thus, the same loudspeaker set applied at the stadium could also provide sound at five rock concerts, 15 concerts in the community centre or 25 corporate parties.

The idea of MAG MUST is also unique in terms of sound coverage uniformity. Large numbers of identical sound sources over a large area reduce the unevenness of the sound pressure at the venue. Moreover, it also reduces the amount of reflected sound from surfaces, which is the biggest challenge in terms of achieving high quality sound.

This way, the MAG MUST technology allows to eliminate too loud or too quiet sound in different areas of the large venue, and also allows listeners and guests to feel the sound like never before. To hear it the way it was designed is MAG Audio’s top goal.

FULL TIME

KOLOS STADIUM Kolos was recently equipped with a new cutting-edge sound system from MAG Audio.

NSC OLIMPIYSKIY NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium was one of the most complex arenas in Ukraine in terms of sound. MAG MUST technology has resolved its problems and allowed the stadium to reach new heights.

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EVENT DIARY 2021

ALSD International Virtual 15th March, Online www.alsdinternational.com

MONDO | STADIA presents AGORA June, Barcelona www.mondostadia-agora.com

SPORTEL Monaco 5th - 7th October, Monaco www.sportelmonaco.com

Coliseum Summit Europe 22nd - 26th March, Online www.coliseum-online.com

International Sports Convention 8th - 9th June, London www.internationalsportsconvention.com

NAB Show 10th - 13th October, Las Vegas www.nabshow.com

International Federations Summit 21st - 22nd April, Online www.majoreventssummit.com

ALSD International 6th - 7th September, Liverpool www.alsdinternational.com

InfoComm 2021 23rd - 29th October, Orlando www.infocommshow.org

MONDO | STADIA presents AGORA Online 20th - 22nd April, Online www.mondostadia-agora.com

IBC2021 10th - 13th September, Amsterdam www.alsdinternational.com

ISE 2021 1st - 4th June, Barcelona iseurope.org

World Football Summit 22nd - 23rd September, Madrid www.worldfootballsummit.com

Host Venue: Liverpool FC’s Anfield Stadium

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

Europe’s Leading Premium Seat & Hospitality Conference & Exhibition

Leading the Premium Seat Industry Since 1990

Everton Football Club’s Goodison Park

STOP THE PRESSES!

Virtual event announced for March 15 with keynotes from World Rugby COO, Alan Gilpin and Eden Park CEO, Nick Sautner, plus a round-up of all the latest sports venue developments.

September 6 - 7, 2021 Anfield Stadium Liverpool, UK An innovative hybrid event, offering physical & virtual opportunities

M&S Bank Arena Liverpool

50+ Speakers, 35+ Exhibition Stands, Networking Events and more…

State-of-the-Art Venue Tours: Liverpool FC’s Anfield Stadium, Everton FC’s Goodison Park, and M&S Bank Arena Liverpool Presented by:

I N T E R N AT I O N A L Leading the Premium Seat Industry Since 1990

For more information: alsdinternational.com or katie@alsd.com

20-22 APRIL 2021 | WWW.MONDOSTADIA-AGORA.COM