Stadium Technology Report 2014 - May Edition

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Manchester United supporters take photos on their mobile phones in the Wembley Stadium stands during the FA Community Shield in August 2013

The Wembley way forward Mobile and wireless technology has opened up all manner of possibilities in the sports industry but the task of connecting fans at events continues to confound venue operators. Now, as part of an ambitious new partnership between the Football Association and telecoms giant EE, the team at Wembley Stadium are facing down the challenge. By Eoin Connolly

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ponsorship, when done effectively, is often about making a connection. From a sales perspective the aim is to create a link between a brand and its anointed partner, whether through the implication 100 | www.sportspromedia.com

of shared values or the demonstration of capabilities. Between the two parties involved in the deal, it is a matter of * * In February, the Football Association (FA) completed the biggest sponsorship

deal in the history of Wembley Stadium. 7 # 6 soccer – and plenty besides – was to have a presenting partner. The Wembley name was to be left intact but for the next six years, it was revealed, the venue will

$ ' $ - $ 66 . $ created to mark the change. Traditionalists may baulk at the update and, at times, the sponsor’s title will be shaved off like the second half of a

$ $ . # both parties will see plenty of upside in the new arrangement. On one side is a recently rebuilt world-renowned venue whose owner is looking at ways of funding its upkeep into a second decade. Wembley Stadium $ the FA and, with the liabilities taken on building it still not cleared, a sobering $ : 123ÂŞ# lease on a swathe of Club Wembley debenture hospitality seats will expire, and shoring up alternative income streams is a pragmatic move. / 66# 5= $ telecoms giant formed from the merger of two almost-as giants, Orange and T-Mobile. A national market leader in 4) # 66 $ $ $ $ $ $ * ! = # or the kind of spotty customer service reputation that inevitably follows a forced migration from an established brand. For the latter, a partnership with Wembley provides not only an association with one of the most established names # $ ‹ and ideally, highly positive – showcase for its expertise. For the FA and Wembley, it is an opportunity to tackle one of the biggest problems in venue management. “Connectivity is fast becoming a utility service like water or gas and it is something our customers want and expect,â€? says Rob Ray, the director of digital and IT for the FA Group. “The 66 $ 66 also shares our goals on building better customer relationships through the use of technology and we are really looking forward to the partnership leading the way in terms of fan engagement.â€? ; 1#222 people at the FA, working across 55 locations – including the national stadium. The importance of that site is such that 66 the making.

EE chief executive Olaf Swantee and Wembley Stadium chairman Melvin Benn launch their alliance

“We have diligently taken our time, in collaboration with Wasserman, in sourcing a technology brand that shares our enthusiasm and commitment and 66 ' $ experience the best it can be,� said Peter Daire, the outgoing FA Group head of sponsorship, as the union was announced. & # been anticipated. As far back as January 123@# 66 $ in place of the pair it had superseded, national newspapers were already reporting a done deal. The presenting sponsorship-style branding had already been suggested and the Daily Mail went so 5=G1 to the agreement. 66 partnership is not entirely down to the importance of its technical role. The FA puts lucrative associations in place across three sponsorship pillars – the other two $ 6 the FA Cup – and the technology and throughout that portfolio. Still, there can be no disputing how central it will be to Wembley’s operations. 6" networks of the future are “very simple�, ; �6 $ connected all of the time,� he says. “To achieve this we will have to bend the

# 66 do that.� The barrelling surge of telecommunications technology has brought an unending stream of possibilities for the sports industry in its wake. Yet the task of connecting fans within sporting venues has wrong-footed owners and operators as little else. “Most of the old stadiums and any of the stadiums in the Premier League, $ 6 - - Bridge, are really solid, solid concrete and steel stadiums,� explains Sean Larner, the vice president of international sales at venue network specialist Xirrus. “That does make for a massive implementation headache for most people. We’ve found ways with our outdoor devices and by doing things like microcell or reducing the degree patterns of the antennas to give a far, far better experience, even in those environments. “Whether it’s Liverpool or somewhere like the Stade de France, or any of the 6 which are thick concrete with tonnes of steel, we’ve still found a way around it. It’s much easier when you’re talking to modern clubs that are doing things with tonnes of plasterboard, eliminating these big steel girders and putting in environment but also giving comfort to the fans.� SportsPro Magazine | 101

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The Wembley app provides event information and will soon allow for mobile-based purchases

Wembley, of course, is a newer venue 5=# $ 122ÂŞ that it does not pose its own problems to Ray and his colleagues. For one thing, he notes, “technology moves very fast and ÂŽ 6 seven years, mobile technology and the habits of its end users have advanced a generation or more, and the process shows little sign of slowing down. Â?' 66#ÂŽ

; # � had to address the right ‘jumping off ’ point that builds on what we have but ˜ $ Ž Quite apart from that, the sheer 102 | www.sportspromedia.com

physical scale of the stadium brings its ' A2#222 # Wembley is the most capacious sporting 5= $ soccer grounds in the world. The percentage of those visitors using datahungry mobile devices is high, and is only going to get higher. A2#222 #

# are not enjoying the same stadium experience. There will be fans who want to capture and share every moment digitally, those who want access to live statistical analysis and those after something else altogether. Wembley caters for certain groups of spectators in entirely different ways. Like an increasing number of top-end grounds, it seats thousands in hospitality sections alongside the many thousands more elsewhere. Then there is the fact that soccer forms only a part – if a large part – of the event calendar. Some of the other attractions will place broadly similar demands on a network – the stadium layout changes little when the round ball turns eggshaped and one of the rugby codes or .7 # 6 $ the national team have been waved off > # 92#222 $ " on north-west London for the sell-out rematch between Carl Froch and George ) @3 ( % # stadium will reverberate to the sounds of One Direction and the screams of 9 # ÂŞ 8th June. Then, the arrangement and behaviour of those in attendance will be markedly different. “The key is bringing the right mix of technology closer enough to every customer and matching it to the customer’s needs and capabilities,â€? says Ray. “What’s the capability of the customer’s device? What’s the customer doing? Streaming a video might not be as appropriate to < customer enjoying a half-time drink.â€? That is to say nothing of the size of the building itself: a full kilometre in circumference, with an existing network $ $ 422 Â?/ the best connected stadium,â€? says Ray. “That means using the most appropriate technology for each and every part of the stadium.â€?

At this early stage of the collaboration, * $ achieved. The aims are ambitious, with Ray suggesting that the combination 66 networking capabilities puts the partners “in a great place to incorporate some of 66 ‹ 4)# @) and/or Wi-Fi to all customers�. Ray also notes that the six-year term # 66 # “now allow us to make better informed decisions for the longer term and the $ Ž - # $ $ Wembley visitors comes in the form of a jointly developed smartphone app. Available for free on the usual platforms it provides details of upcoming events, including logistics and, where tickets $ # $ " There is also information about the venue itself, such as travel information and even a feature allowing fans to check out the view from their seats. “In due course this will be extended to provide a more tailored experience services, mobile ticketing and mobile payments,� adds Ray. “The work being undertaken will happen across the duration of the deal – this is Wembley Stadium it has to be right and it has to # 66 $ committed to that goal.� The vision for the partnership is one where the Wembley spectator is connected “from sofa to seat and $ Ž : # parameters of which will no doubt change considerably in the time ahead, but Ray greets it excitedly. “Customer expectations continue to evolve and grow,� he says. “Fans want to connect, to share their experience and to engage with the event. Our partners, event owners and ourselves want the fans to have the best experience possible and to amplify our events through our connected services. Our content and 66 $ to put themselves at the centre of their social networks. “I am not sure I look at these changes as demands – these are amazing opportunities to make a difference and to show the power of our technology.�

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Taking a stand All-seater stadiums became mandatory at the top levels of English professional soccer as part of a revolution in standards after the Hillsborough disaster of 1989. Today, however, a campaign is gathering pace to introduce the ‘safe standing’ areas seen elsewhere in Europe, and it is gaining support from fans, clubs and manufacturers. By Eoin Connolly

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tanding is an evocative concept in English soccer, redolent of a foreign past. For the romantics it inspires memories of a massed terrace, gathered long before kick-off, moving and singing as one. For others it recalls an age of discomfort; a stranger’s $ # ˜ More than anything, though, terracing in the UK has long been inextricably linked to a period of disdainful neglect of soccer fans culminating in the Hillsborough stadium disaster, whose 25th anniversary was marked this year. Appalling police mismanagement and a poor stadium layout caused a horrendous crush at the home of - ' 7% & 3H % 3AFA AH Liverpool supporters died that day, many 3F % A9 never awoke from a coma.

The ‘rail seat’ can be locked in two positions, acting as a handrail or an indestructible seat

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The Taylor Report, issued in the wake of the tragedy, mandated that all grounds in the top two tiers of the English league pyramid become all-seater. A sizeable minority of fans, however, have never felt comfortable in those seats. Today, with safety standards changed beyond recognition and the families $ ! $ inching towards justice for their loved ones, there are some who wish to get on their feet again. �: $ demand from a certain proportion of supporters to stand at football matches,� says Malcolm Clarke, the chair of the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF). “There can be no logic in a law which requires all-seater stadia in the top two divisions but not below that, because the implications are that a ground that is safe for a team in League One suddenly becomes unsafe if the team on the pitch is good enough to get the club promoted into the Championship.� The FSF, which has over 200,000 members from across the English game, is several years into a campaign to introduce the kind of ‘safe standing’ areas in use in Sweden, Austria and – in particular – Germany to the country’s top-level grounds. According to an internal survey, nine out of ten English soccer fans would support such a move. Their reasons for this may vary. For some, it would be a rejoinder to what is seen as an increasingly anodyne experience inside venues – particularly in the Premier League. “I think it’s easier to sing when you’re standing up than when you’re sitting down,� admits Clarke, “and of course people stand up at moments

of excitement and are allowed to do so anyway. So I think it’s likely to help with the atmosphere.� For Clarke and the FSF, that is not of primary importance. “First and foremost, any sensible industry listens to its customers,� he says, “and without the match-going fans inside the ground there wouldn’t be an industry and there wouldn’t be a television product, so it’s important to listen to the views of those and choice is a key part of this – choice not just for those who want to stand, but for those who want to sit without somebody standing in front of them.� ' * for clubs in the Premier League and Championship to provide seats for every spectator, it is not illegal for fans to stand in front of them – unless a steward insists that they do not do so. In practice, many clubs have found this rule to be unenforceable, and some have issued internal edicts to security staff to leave supporters be in parts of their grounds. Clarke argues that this creates a situation where those who cannot or prefer not to stand have a limited view of the play and that, in any case, standing in specialised areas would be safer than the current state of affairs. � * #Ž �' that we don’t support either anybody who doesn’t want to stand being required to do so, whether in a seated area or not, neither do we support any of the regulations to force clubs to introduce standing. But we think this should be a decision left to the clubs.� The campaign is gathering momentum as a result of a fundamental strategic change by the FSF. Rather than pursuing

Signal Iduna Park, home of Borussia Dortmund, boasts Europe’s largest standing section but converts to an all-seater stadium for Uefa competitions

the authorities directly, the group has begun engaging clubs to lobby on its behalf. The impact of this has been $ 3A 12 playing in the Premier League are now supportive of a change – with Liverpool the unsurprising exception – while in February a majority of the 72 Football League clubs voted in favour of the reintroduction of standing to the Championship. Speaking of the change in approach, Clarke accepts that “it was a bit of an error that it took so long for that particular penny to drop�. The FSF has also sought the assistance of manufacturers like Ferco Seating, which has participated in the group’s Safe Standing Roadshow in recent years. �' carefully and initially, of course, as a seating contractor I wasn’t interested in people who wanted to stand up,� recalls Michael Burnett, the Ferco managing director. “However, they do have a very compelling story and I could see that it was possible for us to kill two birds with one stone here in that we could satisfy the needs of football supporters in England and sell a product at the same time.� European soccer’s governing body, Uefa, made all-seater stadiums mandatory

3AA2 : for standing sections to be acceptable to top clubs, they would need to be easily converted to seating areas. Rail seating is the primary answer to this problem. “The essence of the rail seat is that performs two completely separate functions,� Burnett explains. “One is that it has to perform as a barrier, and therefore it should be no bigger than a barrier and take up no more space than a barrier. A typical barrier in a football stadium has a 50mm diameter handrail - looks like a handrail but below that – in between the vertical posts that hold the handrail – there is a seat which sits completely within that 50mm space.� Ferco provided a sample rail seating unit for the FSF roadshow and has since installed a small section at Ashton Gate, home of League One side Bristol City. Other clubs have held consultations with Ferco and other grounds, Burnett says, could be converted “very, very easily� – even in a two-week period between �: " #Ž

Â?' " # because the rail seat is designed to act as a crush barrier and the regulations require

that it should be able to withstand certain loadings – much, much more than a typical stadium seat, whatever that can withstand.â€? The other requirements for a safe standing area to work properly are appropriate restrictions on numbers, adequate access and exit points, and ) club Borussia Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park features the largest standing terrace left in Europe, the 24,454-capacity SĂźdtribĂźne. The upper tier uses convertible seating, with temporary seats brought in for the larger lower tier. For Uefa Champions League matches the seats must be fully restored but with Bundesliga games representing “business as usualâ€?, crowd control measures are broadly the same in either mode. “I know that there is a discussion of standing places and security,â€? says Dr Christian Hockenjos, the stadium manager at Signal Iduna Park. “You have it especially in your country [the UK] because of the accidents you had in the past, so this is absolutely understandable with your history. On the other hand, when I look at what can happen, sure, with less of a crowd there is less risk. “But we have a law in Germany that tells us the number of spaces for one supporter, and we move within these SportsPro Magazine | 105

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regulations. And the emergency exits are calculated on this higher number of ' $ ÂŒ they behave badly with a standing tribune $ ÂŒ argument that you can hear sometimes. I cannot follow this argument.â€? The German example is compelling for those who wish to see that country’s partnership between clubs and supporters replicated in England. There is an expectation among some that the introduction of safe standing could be the thin end of the wedge. ÂĄ' is the place,’ wrote Alistair Campbell – Burnley fan, broadcaster and director of communications for British prime 3AAÂŞ 122@ – in a piece debating the issue for The Guardian newspaper in February. ‘Once fans show that they are capable of winning arguments and tactical battles in pursuit of a broader strategy to change the game, other changes will come.’ The FSF’s other active initiatives include ‘Twenty’s Plenty’, a campaign to cap ticket prices for away supporters at UKÂŁ20, and the rising cost of attending matches across the English game has passed the tipping point for many. Clarke estimates that clubs Â?3H to 20 per centâ€? of their grounds to safe standing and suggests that “the possibility of allowing more people in, reducing ticket prices and still getting an increased income for the football clubâ€? would create a “winwin for everybodyâ€?. According to Burnett, the cost of a rail seat is around twice that of an industry-standard plastic seat. This can be recouped through lower upkeep costs – rail seats are sold as ‘unbreakable’ – and the ability to allow space for almost twice as many fans on matchday. At Borussia Dortmund, Hockenjos reports, the convertible seating section of the -¡ $¡ Â?F#F22 the domestic league and for international # 4#922ÂŽ Burnett reveals that rail seats have previously been the subject of queries from regulators like the Sports Grounds Safety Authority, largely centring on whether they can legally be considered seats at all. No objections have been upheld. “You know, but I got the impression that their questions were coming not 106 | www.sportspromedia.com

The Hillsborough disaster of 1989 prompted dramatic changes in stadium safety standards

from the point of view that they’re trying to understand things,â€? Burnett suggests. “The problem for these people is that their bosses are the politicians. They have a certain standpoint, and as a civil servant you’re there to try and uphold your bosses’ wishes.â€? The position of the UK government on safe standing is that it will only seek to amend the law if the demand is great enough. It has made plans to talk to representatives from the Football League. Yet even for some broadly sympathetic fans, the all-seater arrangement has come to represent a kind of dĂŠtente between supporters and the authorities; a means of protecting a relationship that has moved past the contemptuous dysfunction that led to Hillsborough. For one group in particular, the argument is clear-cut. The Hillsborough Family Support Group remains implacably opposed to the return of any form of standing at major English grounds, with leading members arguing that it can never be danger-free. Liverpool FC gives the group unwavering support and will not make any case for safe standing without its approval. “People have a right to argue for it, that’s their opinion,â€? said group chair Margaret Aspinall, who lost her son in the disaster, in a February interview with the Daily Mirror. “But I think the families have more of a right to argue against it because we have lost our loved ones. “Safety for other people is a priority $ ' given pre-Hillsborough and people were still getting crushed. Did anybody listen ŒŽ Clarke, for his part, is entirely sensitive to the views of the group on “an intensely emotional subjectâ€? but says that

“it would be wrong to equate stadium disasters with standing�. �' ‹ : get licensed – where there wasn’t a precise control over the numbers going into each

#ÂŽ Asked how the FSF addresses the continued opposition from the Hillsborough Family Support Group and others, he adds: “It’s really trying to have the argument and reassure those who, perhaps for understandable reasons, have got fears about it that we’re talking about perfectly safe arrangements. I mean, we represent half a million football fans. The last thing that we’re ever going to do is to provoke something that puts their safety at risk.â€? The opposition of the Hillsborough families may remain an immovable obstacle for the safe standing campaign in soccer but as Burnett points out, it does not mean there is no market for rail seating in the UK. “For instance,â€? he notes, “where there’s grounds where you have a dual code – like the Madjeski Stadium where they play rugby and football – like other supporters a lot of rugby fans like to stand up during the $ $ the beers that they’re allowed‌ so for dual code you certainly can adapt it there, where there aren’t any regulatory restrictions when it comes to, say, rugby fans watching a match as opposed to football fans.â€? Concert venues are another area of interest. Burnett reveals discussions with one former soccer ground, whose name he will not yet divulge “in case they would : ÂŽ# where the owners are interested in rail seating as a means of expanding capacity and attracting a higher calibre of promoter and musical act. For the FSF and the supporters of its campaign, the work will continue to give supporters of England’s biggest clubs a safe place to stand. Legitimising pilot schemes is the next target. “I wouldn’t like to put a timescale on it,â€? & Â?' in the last couple of years than I would ever have dreamed possible, say, three or four years ago. So we just keep going and I’m sure that in the end common sense will prevail so that we get an arrangement that suits everybody without threatening people’s safety in any way.â€?

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Crowd control At UK£45 million, the new grandstand development at Cheltenham is the Jockey Club’s single largest investment on capital infrastructure. Beyond the building itself, the circulation-aiding design will usher in a new era of comfort at one of the world’s busiest racing venues. By James Emmett

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ritish racing is undergoing something of a unique phenomenon. Faced with dwindling coverage, dwindling audiences, and dwindling revenues, the last decade has seen racing authorities pull together to grow the sport on all fronts. The sport has been sold like never before and racing’s biggest days are now subject to oversubscription, boosted sponsorship, and healthy coverage across a variety of platforms. Racing’s biggest days invariably fall within wider multi-day meetings. This ‘festivalisation’ of British racing is a predicament the racing authorities are pleased to be faced with but, as old infrastructure begins to creak, it is certainly a predicament. Nowhere is the gigantism that is creeping into racing’s biggest meetings more evident than at Cheltenham, the

Jockey Club-owned racecourse in the west of England that each March hosts jump racing’s most prestigious annual event, the Cheltenham Festival. Aided by the addition of a fourth day of racing in 2005, attendances at the Festival have been creeping up for years. Good for the coffers, and for the atmosphere, that may be, but anecdotal evidence led the Jockey Club to take the step of reducing capacity for the Festival’s climactic Gold Cup Day in 2013 from 70,400 to 67,000. The venue had simply become uncomfortably crowded, poor weather forced those already packed in to hunt for shelter. Unsurprisingly, overcrowding, pinch points, and venue circulation are the key concepts that have underpinned a redevelopment masterplan that will come to fruition in 2016, when the racecourse

The crowded parade ring will be the focus of the new redevelopment at Cheltenham Racecourse

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will unveil a new grandstand complex. At a cost of UKÂŁ45 million, the redevelopment represents the largest single capital investment made by Jockey Club Racecourses, which owns and operates 15 racing venues across the UK. UKÂŁ25 million of that funding will be drawn from an innovative scheme that saw the Jockey Club launch the $ The next phase of the Cheltenham Racecourse Master Plan has already seen improvements and new buildings installed across the venue. Work began as soon as the detritus and temporary structures from this year’s Festival, which ran from 11th to 14th March, were cleared away. Locally based architects Roberts Limbrick – who designed the Centaur and the Best Mate stand, the last major buildings to be opened at Cheltenham in 2004 – had been feeding into the Jockey Club’s proposals for the racecourse since the early 2000s. A major feasibility study conducted by 1231 new development, which will itself follow another Roberts Limbrick design. “There was an evolving brief with a number of people involved with it over a number of years,â€? reports Stephen Limbrick, joint managing director of Roberts Limbrick. “Circulation and crowd movement was an absolute priority on this. “We had a green guide consultant and a crowd consultant working with us,â€? he continues, “and they’ve assessed the design based on what we’ve put forward. We’ve worked with them and it’s been assessed as being a major improvement on what came before. Simply just the spaces we’ve applied now for circulation are so much greater than they ever were before that it’s simply got to be more comfortable.

Horse walk The horse walk will be shifted by some 20 metres to create more space around the new grandstand. Crossing points will be widened to ease pinch points, and a new bridge installed feeding into the new building’s second-level walkway.

Solar panels Photovoltaic panels installed on the roof of the revamped weighing room will power borehole heat pumps. That heat will be channelled into the ground oor of the new grandstand, keeping it warm throughout the year.

Promenades Wider promenades and piazzas underpin the design of the new facility and its surrounds. Sweeping around Cheltenham’s parade ring in a multi-tiered oval, the space will be transformed into a dramatic, but free-owing, amphitheatre.

“Combine that with better and more venues, a huge amount more toilets and a lot of covered space, because the new deck will also provide outdoor but undercover space which is where the pressure is really on when the weather is not very good. It will be a dramatic improvement.� As well as his work at Cheltenham, Limbrick has worked on other racing developments at Epsom, Huntingdon and Newmarket, large-scale leisure centres such as the Wales National Pool, the University of Worcester Sports Arena, and Saracens rugby club’s new Allianz Stadium. The racing experience, he believes, is unique in the world of sport. “If you go to a major football match, you might have a beer or something to eat before hand, then you watch the match, you might have a beer or something to eat afterwards and then you go home,� he says. “Whereas with racing, you arrive there and you spend all day there. You have a beer, something to eat, you may go to the shopping

area, you may go and people-watch, you watch the horses in the parade ring, you watch a race, you may watch different races in different positions and then you might go back somewhere else. You’re constantly on the move, it’s a constantly transient crowd and that crowd needs to feel comfortable and enjoy the day, all day and in lots of different modes, notwithstanding the fact that the horse is still the centre of the attraction on a race day.� The plans include a new 6,500-capacity grandstand, which will adjoin the existing larger grandstand building and will replace the old 1920s A&R block. It will include a variety of bars across six levels, new club rooms for A&R members, annual members and owners and trainers, 12 new hospitality boxes, a new royal box, and a ‘Premium Super Club’, which Limbrick believes will become the venue’s premier hospitality offering, on " ˜ It is the walkways, piazzas and bridges

that sweep into, around, and under the new building that have really driven the design process, though, and it is these elements that are likely to be the most transformative to the experience on offer to racegoers at Cheltenham in the future. “One of the main targets of this project was to ramp up the quality, make circulation and venue quality so much higher – especially circulation – and in the end it will take it back up to its previous capacity and probably only add another 1,000 on,� reveals Limbrick. “So it’s very much about upping the game in terms of raising the quality of the race day experience and hospitality.� To that end, Limbrick explains, the design is centred around Cheltenham’s beautiful and relatively large parade ring, with " ˜ and, two levels up, a shifted horse walk to make room for it all, with a revamped weighing room for the jockeys to boot. Adding to the drama of the architecture – but making design and construction, SportsPro Magazine | 109

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Gold Cup Day at the Cheltenham Festival attracted 67,814 spectators in 2014: the capacity was actually reduced in 2013 in a bid to combat overcrowding

which will be carried out by building company Kier, more complex – is the fact sloping land. Approached from the Centaur building at the main entrance of the course, the ground at the beginning of the new grandstand building is actually at level two. “By the time you get to the end of the new grandstand,� says $ # � ˜ Ž “We’re introducing a fantastic leveltwo deck which runs round the main grandstand balcony level, right round the edge of the parade ring, and then links in to the new grandstand so you’ll have this double layer of circulation but all focused

around the parade ring, so it would be a real amphitheatre experience,� he adds. “On one end that will link on to a new terrace which will be the garden bar, which will have new access into the Gold Cup Room, and at the other end it will wrap right the way round, link into the end of the old grandstand and completely carry on at level two into the new grandstand.� The wraparound element is a feature that’s echoed in the design of the new boxes, whose balconies loop round the rotund corner of the new building. As well as diverting the horse walk by some 20 metres, the Roberts Limbrick

The Cheltenham project will cost UKÂŁ45 million overall and is scheduled for completion in 2016

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design calls for much wider crossings and a bridge over the walk to the secondlevel wraparound walkway. “Where at the moment it’s so crammed up against it that whichever way you try to go you’re so shoulder to shoulder with people you don’t really have any choice and you just go with the crowd,� says Limbrick. “So we’re not losing the experience of being able to get up close to the horses as they come back from the racecourse but we’ve probably doubled the width of the crossings and moved them three or four times the distance away from the end of the grandstand. “It will be so much more comfortable and so much easier to walk around. It’s a real bottleneck at the moment at the end of the Tote Terrace.� Sustainability has played a role in the planning process, too, with the redevelopment set to include watercollection points to siphon rainwater away to the main reservoir which Cheltenham staff use to irrigate the course. “We’ve also got a series of boreholes going in to create ground source heat pumps,� says Limbrick. “Those pumps will be driven by photovoltaic cells which are situated on the new weighing room. The heat from that will be channelled into the ground ˜ # < keep it ticking over at all times of the year without having to put any other heat source in there.�

FFT/2013

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Growing pains The French Tennis Federation’s redevelopment of Roland Garros, the home of the French Open, was widely welcomed within tennis circles when it was announced in early 2011, but since then the project has been dogged by public opposition. Three years on and though little progress has been made, FFT chief executive Gilbert Ysern remains confident that staying in Paris was the right decision. By Michael Long

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hen the French Tennis Federation (FFT) elected in February 2011 to keep the French Open at Stade Roland Garros in Paris rather than move to a larger, out-of-town location, it was hailed by the organisation itself as ‘a decision that would go down in history as one of the most important since the stadium was built in 1920’. The basis of that landmark decision, which saw the existing home of the French Open selected over three potential sites in Gonesse, to the north of Paris, Versailles to the west and Marne-la-VallĂŠe to the east, was a plan to modernise Roland Garros and its facilities in order 112 | www.sportspromedia.com

to preserve the tournament’s status as the world’s premier tennis event on clay. “We believe that our venue is unique in the world,� says Gilbert Ysern, the chief executive of the FFT who doubles as Roland Garros tournament director each year in late May. “There are so many countries that are willing to develop new tennis facilities, it’s very important to remain unique and that’s the reason why we elected to stay here in Paris and modernise and redevelop Roland Garros rather than leave and build something new from scratch that would have lost that unique personality.� Though revered for its immediately recognisable red courts and distinctively Parisian feel, Roland Garros has at least

one obvious shortfall: at 21 acres it is currently the smallest of the four Grand Slam sites. That lack of space, coupled with the unpredictable Parisian weather, has led to regular complaints from players, fans and the media over its cramped facilities, especially when, as it almost always does at some point during the tournament fortnight, the rain starts to fall. ' " existing site out of the question in the tight , # 77 has been to come up with a plan to do more with what it has by re-landscaping Roland Garros whilst upgrading its existing infrastructure. The focal point of the project, which is expected to cost around

The â‚Ź340 million project to revamp Roland Garros has been delayed by challenges from local and environmental groups

₏340 million, is Philippe Chatrier Court, $ with a retractable roof to enable play to continue irrespective of adverse weather and nightfall. The roof is scheduled for completion by 2017, with the 15,000-seat stadium set to also be expanded to create more room for spectators and extra space To the east of the compound, a semisunken 5,000-seat court surrounded by four large greenhouses will be constructed within a nearby botanical garden and will serve as the replacement for the existing No.1 Court, which will make way for a large esplanade where fans will be able to relax and enjoy the on-court action on large TV screens. To the west, meanwhile, the Fonds des Princes playing area will be extended to incorporate seven match courts, one of which will have space for 2,200 spectators, while new access points will be installed to alleviate visitor congestion throughout. The planned improvements have been widely welcomed within the tennis world $ # # $ the City of Paris, but despite receiving such support the FFT’s plan has come up against strong opposition from a handful of Parisian environmental and urban planning groups.

In March 2013 an administrative court in the French capital ordered the suspension of the project citing local concerns over how it might impact the neighbouring botanical gardens, while the court also ruled that the terms of the FFT’s new 99-year lease agreement with the City of Paris were unsatisfactory. As such, the duration of the lease was subsequently halved to 50 years and the FFT’s annual Â? of â‚Ź8-10 million per yearâ€? dependent on revenues, according to Ysern. In light of those amendments, the same tribunal overturned its decision last October, giving the project the green # for the FFT came in February when the court dismissed altogether three appeals once again opposing the project on environmental grounds. The courtroom battle, however, continues to draw on. “Some people are claiming that we should not do what we are doing in the Jardin des Serres d’Auteuil, the ‘Greenhouse Garden’,â€? says Ysern, speaking in midMarch. “But actually the tribunal said we are entitled to do that and we have the right to do what we want to do.â€? As well as the ongoing legal wrangling surrounding the redevelopment project,

Ysern and the FFT have had to deal with the parallel challenge of selling media rights in what has proved a tough marketplace. Last September, the body put 8 of Roland Garros – from 2014 to 2018 – to tender, but interest from French broadcasters was disappointing to say 7 bidders, only Eurosport and national broadcaster France TĂŠlĂŠvisions tabled offers for the rights and both bids failed to meet the FFT’s tender criteria. “It was not $ #ÂŽ K ˜ Â?' are going to have a slight increase from this year on, compared to the previous contract, but this will not be spectacular.â€? After a second round of bidding, France TĂŠlĂŠvisions did eventually renew its deal in March, but only committed to paying Â? " ÂŽ ?3H H million a year it had forked out under its previous deal. “Unfortunately we are way behind Wimbledon or the US Open in terms of domestic rights but obviously that’s it, there’s not much we can do about that,â€? Ysern adds. “Fortunately we had not planned on using that money, that will not come, for paying for the redevelopment project, so it doesn’t cause a problem for the development plans.â€? SportsPro Magazine | 113

FFT/2013

While the project may not have been affected by the disappointing tender, Ysern rebuffs the suggestion that the impact was in fact vice versa. On the contrary, he insists that any uncertainty surrounding the redevelopment, which will create greater scheduling certainty thanks to the installation of the Philippe Chatrier roof whilst allowing for potentially lucrative night sessions, was in no way to blame for the lack of interest from domestic broadcasters. “There was no link between our development plans, and maybe the question marks about the development plan, and the interest from the broadcasters,� he says categorically. “We had decided that we wanted [the tournament] to remain on free-to-air. We just have three free-to-air broadcasters in France and unfortunately two of them ended up not being interested. I think it’s probably because tennis is not so easy for scheduling on TV. I think the other two – TF1 and M6 – ended up thinking $ accommodate in their schedules.� Spectacle-creating night sessions should, however, increase the appeal for both broadcasters and spectators, as the organisers of the other three Grand Slams have already found. Indeed, matches ˜ Parisian night will be perhaps the only commercial revenue generators of note to come out of a project whose focus is very much on quality over quantity. “It’s going to sound a bit weird because we’re going to invest a lot of money, but the goal is not to make more money,� Ysern says. “Clearly, had we been in that position we would probably have decided

FFT chief executive Gilbert Ysern wants “the best possible facilities� for the French Open

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FFT/2013

SPECIAL REPORT | STADIUM TECHNOLOGY

At 21 acres, the Roland Garros site in Paris is the smallest of the four Grand Slam tennis venues

to leave and build a bigger facility. We know it’s not going to be much bigger. We know we’re not going to have many more people in, apart from night sessions which we will develop once we have the roof, which means from 2018 onwards. “Apart from night sessions, where we’ll have increased revenues with more sessions and more people, we won’t have much more to sell, except of course the quality of the facilities and the quality of the product will probably entitle us to increase our rates but that won’t be spectacular.� As it stands, the fate of the redevelopment project remains in the hands of the Parisian authorities but Ysern $ summer of 2015, once the FFT’s new National Training Centre, which is already under construction, is completed in nearby Porte d’Auteuil. “Nothing can start until we . Centre, which will take approximately another year,� he says. “In the next 12 months, we should have the building permit but the planning application is still under consideration. We should have approval within 12 months from now.� ' # < go-ahead will herald the start of a new era for Roland Garros and, perhaps more importantly, the end of a tough three years for the FFT. For Ysern personally, it is clear the travails of recent months have not dampened his passion for the project – the infrastructure improvements gathering pace in New York, London and Melbourne, not to mention the creation of lavish new facilities elsewhere, making

the Frenchman more eager than ever to ensure Paris is not left behind. “It is frustrating; to be honest, it’s very frustrating,� he admits. “I wish we had a new Roland Garros next year. It would be much better for us so it is very frustrating to see our competitors are, to some extent, better than we are in terms of the speed for developing their facilities. “But honestly, apart from that frustration, the most important thing for us is to know there will be a nice future for Roland Garros. To some extent, given how long we’ve been there, we are not worrying about a couple of years more or less. The main thing is that we know that we do need to redevelop and modernise infrastructure to keep up and remain one of the biggest events in the world. The main thing for us is to know that it is going to happen and obviously, based on the recent decisions from the tribunal, I do believe that it is going to happen. “We know that we need to be attractive and competition is harder and harder, and more and more tennis tournaments in the world are player-friendly, crowd-friendly and have all this infrastructure that is nicer and nicer. Had we stayed behind the others, down the road our tournament might have become less attractive. “The day the players don’t feel like playing your event then you’re in big danger. That’s why it’s so important for us, even though we are a Grand Slam, to remain attractive and part of being attractive is giving the players the opportunity to play in the best possible facilities, which we are going to have in the next few years.�

COMPANY PROFILE

Xirrus: a smarter solution for high-density wireless environments As a reliable, robust wireless solution becomes a necessity for stadium owners and operators around the world in order to drive the fan experience and monetisation, one US-based company has developed a reputation, across a variety of sports, for having all the answers.

S

port isn’t Xirrus’ core market, but it is the fastest-growing element of the global high-performance wireless network company’s business. In the past 12 months, Xirrus has spread its wings across the world of sport, striking key deals with the likes of Liverpool Football Club, to deploy % ’ European Tour and this year’s Ryder & ) ’ # # with The Jockey Club, which saw a bespoke Wi-Fi service in use at March’s Cheltenham Festival. The US-founded company, which has its headquarters in California, is a truly global operation and in a world where tablet and smartphone revenue is close to exceeding that generated by the entire consumer electronics market, its wireless technology is becoming more and more relevant. “We’ve created what is essentially a stadium team, a special projects team whose job is to go after large public venues, sporting events or areas where there is going to be high-density or high-coverage requirements,� explains Sean Larner, Xirrus’ vice president for its international division. “We’re seeing a massive proliferation of mobile devices, which means when you turn up to a public event or a sports arena or a stadium, there is this urgent and extreme desire and need to have what we refer to as ‘high-density wireless’. Certainly at football # # lots of Twitter, lots of Instagram, lots of photographs and Facebook.� 116 | www.sportspromedia.com

Xirrus is working with Liverpool FC to make the Premier League club’s Anfield home a wireless haven

The increase in mobile devices, largely driven by the desire for real-time online social interaction, has opened up a wealth of potential in-venue revenue streams for professional sports teams, as well as further opportunities to enhance the fan experience – the ability to order food, beverages and merchandise from your seat, or to watch instant replays, different camera angles or even a game taking place simultaneously elsewhere are just some of the possibilities now available, thanks to the solutions companies like Xirrus are deploying. The days of struggling even to get a 3G signal at stadiums packed with # # ’ ‘ found itself at the heart of improving the " ‹ # fan experience will be in future is a guiding force for its sports-related business. From Larner’s position, teams, leagues and stadium operators are, at last, alive to reality: that in an era where high-quality, sophisticated and blanket television and broadcast coverage is the

norm, persuading people to leave their homes and go to stadiums is becoming � got to be able to give them the same experience that they get at home,� Larner says, “and one of those requirements is being able to provide a really robust, resilient wireless experience for the fans. We’re seeing a tremendous amount of new devices coming in, which is having a very big impact, but also we’re starting to see people having a real reliance on video to be able to watch things in real time, to $ $ ˜ # for example, or one race to another race. All of these things are driving organisations to provide a much better experience for their fans.� With its mission to help enhance the " its work, Xirrus has developed a range of solutions which are fully adaptable whatever the sports venue. In soccer, the company currently works with three Premier League clubs, and its

$ % , League contenders Liverpool FC since April last year – tellingly, perhaps, the club’s parent company Fenway Sports Group approached Xirrus, rather than the other way round – provides a neat case study. Liverpool’s head of digital media and technology Andy Robinson told SportsPro in 2013 that it was Xirrus’ “reliability, $ ˜ " $ Ž from rival Wi-Fi operators. “At that time, all they were interested in doing was making sure that when a fan turned up to the stadium they could get on and do things like Twitter and Facebook,� Larner recalls of the early stages of the Liverpool FC project. “As we started to evolve the conversations, we brought marketing into the loop and marketing folks have obviously got very imaginative ways of looking at some of these aspects rolling out. “We started talking about the fan experience encapsulating things like voting for man of the match or being able to order food and drink from your seat, or being able to buy merchandise, or really importantly – and this was a real killer for them – to provide matchday betting to their fans. Those were the applications that we worked with Liverpool to build on their portal so they can provide it to their fans. The ground now is starting to look at other ways of using Xirrus and that’s been a very successful implementation for us.� Other sports have also taken note of the evolving technology and fan demands, including those which do not take place inside a stadium bowl. While on the surface, though, a racecourse different challenge to enabling a reliable, high-performance wireless service throughout a stadium, Larner explains that, in reality, the stadium-nature of most courses means the concepts are similar. In partnership with Irish carrier Eircom, Xirrus was responsible for wireless at March’s Cheltenham Festival, the annual highlight of the jump racing calendar, through a new relationship with The Jockey Club. “They were able to leverage tremendous functionality for the people that turned up to do on-course betting and who turned up to watch the races,� Larner says of a project which he reports went “very, very successfully�.

The challenge for network providers is not in VIP sections, but in the stadium bowl or outdoor areas

The ability for racecourse spectators to place wagers, in real time, via mobile devices is an industry game-changer for a sport so heavily reliant on betting income. “There’s nothing else that is going to drive #Ž #

that Cheltenham and The Jockey Club were “incredibly impressed and pleased with the work we did� during March’s Festival. Xirrus has undertaken similar work with the Australian Turf Club, which relies not only on on-course betting but online revenues from racing hotspots overseas, including Hong Kong and China. �' < density but having very broad coverage requirements, because these are very large areas – acres and acres of land that you have to be able to provide seamless wireless on,� Larner explains. “You want someone to be able to go from one spot to another spot, watching a video or on a betting spree and they don’t want to lose the line halfway through.� Golf courses, meanwhile, pose an entirely different question, but Xirrus is able to deploy what it calls its ‘rapiddeployment kits’ to allow a high-quality service in high-density areas, such as in the crowd around the 18th green or following a tournament leader through the back nine. At September’s Ryder Cup, where Xirrus will deploy its solutions, Larner expects a major test, with host broadcaster Sky’s focus on live video streaming and the desire from on-course spectators to watch what is going on elsewhere. �) $ this is all about being able to push out video and interactive content to the user and also being able to allow the

users to do that,� he reports, again underlining Xirrus’ desire to enhance the fan experience. Indeed, whilst Larner says that VIP sections at sports venues are relatively straightforward to work in, “where you set yourself apart from the Ž bowl or in completely outdoor venues. Looking ahead, Larner suggests that the ability of the next wave of wireless technology to play a role in enriching fans’ stadium experience depends largely on the continued and enhanced development of high-quality, easy-to-use applications and platforms. With that in mind Xirrus, which will continue to play its part by providing what Larner calls “robust, resilient networks�, has just agreed a < 7 $ Ucopia, a specialist provider of portals such as splash pages and guest access. “Betting, in-seat ordering of food, ’ " come along, apart from voting for man of the match, will be live video streaming at your seat of another match somewhere else,� Larner concludes, eyeing a future which Xirrus is helping to shape. “This is why it’s so important that we keep pushing the fan experience, saying to the stadium owners that if you don’t give the fans the same experience they can get inside his home in the stadium then it’s not going to work.� To contact Xirrus call: +44 (0)1727 846585 email jennifer.capewell@xirrus.com or visit: www.xirrus.com

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