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 On 29 June, Tim Westcott, Screen Digest’s senior analyst for TV and Broadband, moderated a panel at Sport and Technology: The Conference 2007 on the increasing role of new technology at sports venues. His panel comprised of David Wood, managing director, Input Media, John Beattie, stadium manager, Arsenal FC, Peter McKenna, stadium director, Croke Park Stadium and Gilles Page, senior lighting designer sports, Philips Lighting. Louise Williams, a PhD student at the Centre for Sport and Dance Studies, Liverpool John Moores University, was there to report on proceedings…….
Moderator Tim Westcott opened proceedings with the statement: “We accept that sports are largely dictated to by television schedules. Sport organisations and federations can’t afford to ignore the needs of the audience.” Westcott detailed that the 2006 FIFA World Cup final was watched by 715m people, the equivalent of one ninth of the entire population. Westcott said that there is a conflict if stadia are just television studios. What about the needs of the paying audience, will their view be obscured by cables and interrupted by television breaks?
Westcott started the panel by asking Peter McKenna (Croke Park Stadium; pictured below courtesy of Getty Images Sport/David Rogers) what the former use of the fifth largest stadium in Europe was prior to its eight-year refurbishment. McKenna outlined that Croke Park is the home for Gaelic sports, the stadium started in 1995 and was completed in 2005. Croke Park boasts not only national games of hurling and football but also rugby internationals and soccer internationals.
McKenna said he hoped to engage in debate concerning how they can enhance the experience for the live audience and compliment the television experience which is different. McKenna commented that: “To my mind there is no change for the live experience, the live experience is what we should all try and strive for.”
In terms of design, McKenna said how important it was to maintain the stadium as being open, which is why they built it in phases, hence the 10 year gap.
McKenna then turned attention to the role of technology experts in the design and stated “television companies and technology experts need to be engaged at the very start of the design build as part of the architectural design team, not as an afterthought.”
The reasons McKenna cited for this related to the intrinsic running of the stadium in terms of plasma screens, cash-less tills and the transmission for various different audiences. McKenna elaborated on a specific example occurring in July 2007 where the first live HD transmission would be launched across a digital terrestrial network (initially to 1,000 homes in Ireland). McKenna detailed that it was vitally important as a stadium to keep embracing technology and to ensure that the live experience is deemed the most important. For example how do they augment the live experience, good sidelines, good facilities for children and disabled patrons, good quality well priced food, easy to access bars? “The experience that you get inside the stadium is far in excess of the experience you get at home.” Difficulties in stadium design?  Westcott asked how much of a challenge it was it to install the infrastructure that the television broadcasters required in the new stadium? McKenna described the process as “colossal” and “expensive” due to having heavy infrastructures required, however also pointed out that the lifespan of technology is relatively short, therefore the installation will move as technology changes, which meant they didn’t have to commit to a particular concept. The challenge faced as McKenna pointed out is juggling “what the advantage of broadcasting to the home is against what the live experience is to the paying fan, TV revenue far exceeds gate receipts in most sports.”
John Beattie (Arsenal FC), in speaking from the operations side, said that “television to some extent is an inconvenience for us, we need to look after our stadium audience first and television secondary, however at the Emirates I would like to think that we are able to do both because the design has been done correctly.”
Where there any problems in accommodating television given the completely unobstructed view each seat has, wondered Westcott?
Beattie replied: “Not really, because the design for the sightlines was done first. What was interesting was that we had to remind the architects that television was important to us, despite saying it was an inconvenience.” However despite the importance of television to Arsenal FC, the original design did not include a television gantry. It was suggested that temporary structures were put in place on a weekly basis instead. The stadium now has a permanent gantry, and permanent camera positions around the ground which are hard wired, which is fine for home broadcasters, but, however, often an issue of trust regarding European companies and British equipment. Beattie was asked whether the fact that the Emirates Stadium is always used for football [soccer] impacts on the design of the television circuits and coverage. Beattie detailed that a difficulty was with the architects being used to designing irregular use stadiums not regular ones, which the Emirates is. “The same goes for television positions for sports, 100% of our sport is football so the cameras are in the same position week in week out, for regular use stadiums, I don’t see why you don’t design it for what you want to use it for in the first place.”
Planning for universal needs?  Regarding lighting, Gilles Page outlined how his role at Philips Lighting was new technology orientated and how it embraced pushing new technology for outdoor application which Page believed is the future. Westcott asked whether there were different needs for different sports and what the television considerations were for this. Page described this as “complicated”, as lighting positions suitable and “nice” for one sport are not necessarily the same for another. Page also outlined that the most demanding group that they deal with is the broadcasters. “The lighting specifications are driven by broadcaster needs,” commented Page.
Westcott asked Page whether his job would be easier if there were no spectators? Page discussed that spectators are not the most important constraint they have, that is the television because they work for the television and the design installation is for the television.
Screening contentious decisions? David Wood (Input Media) whose clients include (among others) Chelsea TV, Arsenal FC and UEFA is responsible for both footage out of the stadium and also in-stadium circuits as Westcott pointed out.
Wood made the point that with Arsenal being the first team to have in-stadium screens, the decision was made to show key moments, but those, which were not contentious and would not cause incite the crowd, something which the FA has asked them to do with the company’s involvement in the new Wembley Stadium. “The key to it is to apply broadcast production values to what is on the screen so that those in stadium are seeing a good quality production and also applying good editorial decisions.”
Woods cited the example of how the company put two cameras into the stadium for each match, allowing them to show a slow-mo on the screen almost immediately the goal is given. Wood said that they also provide “information on the screens such as for substitutions, goal scorers, so there is a sense of value added for stadium audiences.”
Westcott then enquired whether this was the same for every sport, for which Wood detailed that is was not, just applicable to soccer, whereby the feeling from the Football Association was to show value added material. Beattie added to the discussion giving reasons for this at Arsenal, as a potential problem with showing replays of penalty decisions and conspicuous offside calls is “starting world war three across the segregation line because it was a good TV picture.”
McKenna added in contrast that at Croke Park, all the action is shown, not specially selected aspects. Croke Park tries to accommodate all patrons, for examples providing plasma screens to help viewing of the full match day coverage. Westcott asked how important it was that spectators see the whole action, but also when they are not in their seats, but around the whole stadium? McKenna noted that the reaction is usually positive. “The television companies do a great job, when you are watching it at home the panel discussions, the statistics, the shots from other games make it a very ‘enriched’ experienced but the challenge is to ensure that as many people come to the sports events as possible,” commented McKenna, further suggesting that there is a need to replicate the best of the technology appropriate to the environment. Value of the live experience  The importance for McKenna was to maintain the experience in the stadium, which enhances the live attendance and therefore encourages people to come as it is a good day out.
Beattie added by commenting that the pre-match and post-match programmes at Arsenal add to this experience, as it is football related and part of the entertainment package. The only downside Beattie explained was that the club level can appear sparsely populated after half time as they often spend more time in the bars and restaurants to watch the second half.
Wood expanded on Beattie’s comments by saying that the production of the live pre-match show (with commentator) consisted of links to previous matches, commercial breaks (to suit commercial partners) and 45 minute highlight shows after the match on plasma screens. Beattie outlined how the stadium stays open two hours after a match to show programming through the concourse, which has not only great commercial value but also eases transport problems around the stadium.
Incorporating specialists at the design stage Westcott moved the discussion on to enquire as to whether Page thought as a specialist company Philips Lighting should be used at the design stage. Page inferred yes, that he needed to be involved as early as possible to define the lighting position and, for example the size of the stadium/roof must fit with his lighting or he would deliver “a bad lighting solution”. Westcott further asked Page about how the increasing array of technology that television companies are using, such as HD, super slow-mo, impact on lighting design?
Page outlined three areas of impact: 1) Number of Cameras around stadium, 2) New technology, citing the example of the last specification Philips had received for lighting installation (e.g. for 2008 Beijing) was 40% higher than previously used for standard cameras, 3) Not just a question of quantity of light, it is quality of the light.
Wood elicited that television professionals must be in the design stage, for example to combat the “Wally factor” of making sure the studio is above the crowd. However, McKenna, thought that the television companies needed to be restrained and there should be more efficiency in cameras that are put around the game. McKenna also believed that broadcast personalities needed to be tempered down to avoid the largest reality television show being aired.
Westcott asked Beattie about the involvement of Sky in the design of the Emirates Stadium. Beattie informed that for the Emirates Stadium build, Sky was involved early on, but late in the drawing stage, whereby most television companies were involved (primarily Sky) to establish what they wanted and also to make sure that what was being installed from a technology side of the hard wiring cable was what they wanted as most companies bring their own power.
Westcott asked McKenna what difficulties arose in Croke Park being used for other sports, which McKenna highlighted pitch dimensions and structures as being technically challenging as some sports, e.g. Hurling, require 50 meters longer length than a football pitch, whereas sports with smaller pitch dimensions allow for more freedom for the television cameras to move around. McKenna outlined that international companies are demanding in relation to their own requirements for each event, for example, generator noise, television crews, and lighting.
Westcott ended the panel discussion before moving to the Q&A section by asking Wood if there is a difference in the standard of stadia? Wood replied: “Definitely, the big Premier League clubs in general have excellent facilities and are well versed in televisions demands, sometimes over demanding, however you could get an old stadium, say Division One, that’s not pre wired.” For further details about purchasing the post-event paper that was produced for Sport and Technology: The Conference 2007, contact info@sportbusiness.com.
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