SOUNDING OUT THE OPTIONS
Broadcasters working to make ‘ghost games’ more attractive to fans
THE SOUND of boot on ball, that melodic thwack when instep meets sweet spot, may well represent the finest point on the entire aural spectrum.
But even the most musical of notes can sound hollow when it’s allowed to reverberate around a deserted stadium; it needs the full-throated human feedback of a capacity crowd to fully satisfy.
Without fans there to bear witness, meanwhile, the most resounding finish to a lightning-quick counterattack will always feel like a slightly empty gesture.
As more elite football competitions look to join the Bundesliga in putting together some sort of post-pandemic product, then, it’s clear that more work will be needed.
Some of the brightest people in sport are already addressing the shortcomings of ‘ghost games’, a quick fix intended to complete TV obligations for leagues most in hock to broadcasters.
Among the innovators charged with keeping football relevant to fans locked out of the match-day experience, plans include real-time cheering from thousands of supporters connected by a mobile app — far better than the ‘canned applause’ being used by some.
Until such time as ideas like facialrecognition ticketing and temperature sensors in every concourse make going to games safe for fans, the armchair experience is going to be all we have.
Those selling the game know the importance of keeping a global audience tuned in. As UEFA marketing director GuyLaurent Epstein put it: ‘A game without fans is not the best experience. But it might be normal in the coming months.
‘Live sport is still important. The most recurring sentence I’d heard in the past six weeks was: “What can we do to get sport back on TV?”.
‘It is probably the case we will be without fans for a few months. So how do we make the viewing experience better? Sound is key. How can we make it a better experience by having fans chants and sounds — only if they sound authentic. If you try this and it sounds fake, it will be even worse.
‘Also important is the position of cameras to minimise shots of empty stands. I have also heard mention of augmented reality in the stands. Again, it has to be very realistic. If it’s fake, that’s worse than nothing.’
The Bundesliga broadcasts on Saturday and Sunday followed a familiar formula. A presenter and expert in the studio, shots of players arriving at the stadium, warming up, features on key performers … keeping the fans in their comfort zone.
With no-one confidently predicting a large-scale return of supporters this side of 2021, however, the appetite for something more immersive cannot be ignored. Cardboard cut-outs of actual fans sitting in their allocated seats may be a cute gimmick but viewers are going to demand more for their £30 a month than static dummies and piped-in crowd noise disconnected from events on the field.
In one way, then, the coronavirus lockdown should drive new ideas and reward inventive thinking. A couple of teenagers in Toronto are holding talks with North American clubs about an app that allows tens of thousands of fans to have their cheering and singing pulled together in a live stream for broadcast.
It will soon be possible for you to sit in your front room while singing your favourite terracing anthem in unison with a capacity crowd. Heck, why stop there? If you could get 100,000 fans around the world joining in, imagine the noise piped into grounds — and fed back to individual fans via the same app.
It still won’t be the same as going to the game, of course. Which means broadcasters are going to have to do all of that — then go further.
Epstein explained: ‘We have to have more behind-the-scenes content. That means more access to team content, to make the game more exciting on television. As we see from the success of The Last Dance, the documentary involving Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, there are opportunities. It shows what you can do with content that is even 20 years old or more. ‘The reason sport is so important to people is the emotion and passion it creates. And this applies not just to one moment in a game, but the stories behind closed doors.’ We’ve had cameras in dressing rooms before but the half-time footage came without audio for reasons that seemed fairly obvious at the time.
Now? Maybe clubs will need to sell every aspect of game day, from team talk to mic’d up players on the pitch.
The fanatics, those of us who will stop to watch a Sunday amateurs game in the local park, will always tune in for the basic 90 minutes but the support of diehards isn’t enough to keep clubs alive. They must grow their TV audience — and be ready for when fans return to grounds.
On how the new ‘match-day experience’ might look, well, MLS club LA FC were working with facial recognition technology before their season was suspended after just two games. The aim is to require not even a barcode scanner for your season ticket. Your face will be your passport in the stadium, allowing you entry and enabling you to buy anything from a snack to a strip in the club shop.
LA tech chief Christian Lau calls it a ‘contactless customer journey’ from the moment someone turns up. If this sounds far-fetched, be aware that the technology is already out there.
We can’t guarantee it’s coming to every ground soon, but at least some of the above is likely to be part of your viewing experience in the months ahead.