Advances in technology are dramatically changing the live fan experience in stadiums and venues as technology is making it more convenient, personal and engaging for fans around the world. Over the past decade, more and more people have made interacting and utilizing technology a key part of their game day or concert experience. When it comes to sporting events and concerts, connectivity has historically hindered the use of technology, but connectivity issues at stadiums are fast becoming a thing of the past.

Today, fans expect and expect the same network performance they experience from their living room couch at a venue or stadium. Fans want to stay connected during games, whether that means watching replays on their phones, sharing on social media, calling friends and family, digitally interacting with their sports teams, streaming video content, or directly from a mobile device Buy food and drink. These expectations have resulted in high demand for secure and reliable network connectivity throughout venues and sports venues, which was previously out of reach. Just as smart buildings, smart homes and smart cars continue to grow, it should come as no surprise that "smart stadiums" will play a major role in smart cities around the world.

What is a smart stadium?

Smart stadiums provide fans and staff with enhanced, real-time information around the stadium (e.g., parking availability, restroom and concession lines, seat upgrades, special offers, etc.), providing fans with a better, more personalized experience, and improving in-venue Physical security while enabling new services that benefit both fans and stadium operators.

In Seattle, Amazon's Climate Pledge Arena is known for two things: as a venue focused on net-zero climate, and as a technology frontier. For example, Climate Pledge Arena licensed shop assistants use scanning technology to allow customers to shop and pay without being held up by checkout lines. Sensors are triggered when an item is removed from the shelf. Fans then head to the checkout area at the front of the store to have their palms scanned. The credit card is attached to this palm print because the user has pre-registered this information into the system. Stores utilizing the technology include Starbucks, Lil' Woody's Burgers, Big Chicken and the 14 islands of Saint-Michel. Such technologies reduce waste, shorten wait times, and simplify the shopping experience.

Stadiums have traditionally relied on Ethernet, public cellular networks, and WiFi to connect stadiums. However, public cellular networks are often bandwidth-limited due to the high density of devices in small geographic areas. Lower latency and higher bandwidth 5G networks alleviate some of these challenges, but cannot be relied upon solely for a broad range of consumer, provider and enterprise use cases. Ethernet has limitations in supporting mobile use cases, and WiFi lacks the hardened security needed for sensitive information such as credit card transactions and mobile payments.

While Ethernet, WiFi, and cellular technologies will continue to play an important role in connecting smart stadiums, venues everywhere are also looking to private 5G networks to connect thousands of IoT devices throughout the stadium—by providing 5G speeds and Enhanced mobility to bridge this gap.

Stadiums around the world are beginning to realize the benefits of private 5G networks in increasing revenue, streamlining operations and delivering the best possible fan experience. One example is Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres. Providing a secure, reliable, and seamless connection to a stadium that seats more than 40,000 fans is no easy feat.

To provide this level of connectivity, Petco Park recently installed a 5G private cellular network to reliably power mobile applications and make the fan experience even more convenient. The implementation of this private cellular network enables employee iPads and POS devices to connect to process mobile food, beverage and merchandise transactions. Since installation, Petco Park has generated more sales from franchises and merchandise by making the mobile payment process completely frictionless, processing customer transactions faster, and increasing merchandise sales.

eSIM technology for dedicated 5G

The capabilities of eSIM technology enable the deployment of private 5G cellular networks in stadiums and venues. eSIM technology provides a network identity-as-a-service (CaaS) model, enabling network operators around the world to unlock the full value of digital authentication on eSIM-enabled devices, including smartphones, wearables, laptops and tablets.