The agile stadium is coming to Europe and will bring with it a fan experience that the next generation of fans will appreciate.
The next generation of fans are experiencing the world through mobile. They are creating their own content and sharing that with their friends and other fans. They watch, buy, curate and create every day so that retail has already redefined itself to fit that pattern.
Sports is starting to catch up. The US is leading the way with almost all the NFL stadiums now fully connected with HD Wifi and MLS and NBA have also invested in smart stadia technology.
The 49ers WiFi system has a network backbone that can transfer 40 gigabits of data each second. That’s about 40 times faster than today’s fastest home internet connections. The 49ers 68,500 fans can order beer and food from their smartphone app and get video and other content in the stadium with fans able to selfie and upload anytime they want to share the experience.
In Europe many of the big Stadia have not yet installed HD Wifi, but it is coming. The Amsterdam ArenA, FC Schalke 04 and Borussia Dortmund are moving from an analog to digital fan engagement experience. This is the start of smarter agile stadiums in Europe and a better fan experience which is the basis to bring the next generation of fans back to the stadia.