Amazing Super Bowl Technologies You May Not Know About
Super Bowl LVI kicks off this weekend and since Dignarians love our Emerging Technology, we’d like to celebrate the big game by highlighting some of the innovative technologies you might (or might not) see on Sunday.
SoFi Stadium
Let’s start with the venue. SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles is a 3.1 million-square-foot modern marvel that hosted its first NFL game in 2020. It includes a 70,000 square-foot double sided 4K video board known as the Infinity Screen, over 2,500 Wi-Fi 6 access points, as well as a massive multi-functional LED canopy. By the way, Twitter is inviting users to tweet their wildest Super Bowl prediction in 6 words or less so it can be displayed on the roof of SoFi.
The stadium was built approximately 100 feet into the ground due to the seismicity of the area as well as the proximity to LAX airport. The stadium’s columns are built to allow the ground to move from an earthquake while the roof structure remains stable.
When watching the game, take a moment to recognize the architectural and technological genius of this incredible facility.
Next Gen Stats
If you’ve watched NFL games over the last several years you’ve probably seen the AWS Next Gen stats pop up from time to time. The NFL, working with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Zebra technologies, use a combination of technologies to provide deeper insight into the game. Each NFL stadium has 20-30 ultra-wide band receivers and RFID tags on the officials, players, pylons, sticks, and chains. Altogether over 250 devices are used in the stadium for any given game. RFID chips are embedded in players' shoulder pads providing location, proximity to other players, speed, distance, acceleration, deceleration, and distance traveled. Even the football itself has a small embedded chip that measures velocity, RPMs, locational data, and height of passes and kicks.
This data is then combined with AWS machine learning services and historical data to present new insights, and a long list of tracked statistics, about the game. This season saw the introduction of Stats Decision Guide which provides predictions about the next play based on past data and probabilities. Other services introduced as part of Next Gen Stats include Quarterback Expected Rushing Yards, Quarterback Dropback Type, Next Gen Stats Big Play Score, and Expected Fantasy Points.
When you see the Next Gen Stats graphics on the screen, remember the technology behind the scenes making it happen. As is often the case, a great deal of effort and engineering go into simple data visualizations.
Player Health and Safety
There are a number of innovative technologies collecting and analyzing data at the Super Bowl to make the sport safer for those who participate. A recent episode of NFL Explained provides insight into how various technologies are being applied, including helmet testing, helmet safety AI community challenges, rule change analysis, data collection, and the BEAST. The BEAST is a biomechanical device that analyzes the interaction between each player and the football field to determine how those forces affect the player’s body.
The NFL is also working with AWS to build the Digital Athlete which is in effect a digital twin of each player in an effort to better understand injuries to hopefully prevent them in the future. This includes everything from equipment choices and weather to extensive video review of the player’s activity. The digital twin allows analysts to examine numerous diverse scenarios without the participation of the actual player and provides ongoing real time risk analysis.
There is also quite a bit of work being done to prevent brain injuries and the long term effects of concussions, including high-tech mouthguard sensors and public data science challenges available for anyone to participate. In January 2022 the NFL and AWS announced the winners of their most recent AI competition to automatically detect players’ helmet impacts. The NFL typically reviews game footage of major injuries frame-by-frame from every angle with 150 different variables. Each helmet collision is tracked and becomes especially difficult near the line of scrimmage and when considering a number of different viewpoints. The winners’ models in the competition automate the process making it faster and more accurate while also enabling future analysis and algorithm updates to continue to improve player safety models.
A few years ago the NFL was under significant pressure related to head injuries and some questioned the future of the sport. They have since developed an Engineering Roadmap and appear committed to use advanced technology and collaboration with industry and academia to truly make the game safer for those at most risk—the players.
AR/VR, the Metaverse, and NFTs
What would a Super Bowl in 2022 be without some mention of the most hyped technologies in industry today?
Augmented Reality (AR)/Virtual Reality (VR) has been gaining popularity for the Super Bowl over the last several years and this year promises more of the same. Here are just a few examples.
Samsung and SoFi are providing visitors access to the metaverse via their Dreamground offering. While at the stadium you can view virtual sculpture gardens, scan QR codes throughout the facility for AR experiences, and add your own AR artwork for others to see—maybe on the Infinity Screen.
The last Super Bowl saw 59 million people on Snapchat engage with AR lenses during the big game. With Snapchat’s continued investment in AR technology and strong growth we can expect more of these experiences this year.
Miller Lite has decided to take its advertising to the metaverse and will be hosting a virtual bar event via the world-building platform, Decentraland.
The NFL and Meta are teaming up to allow you to update your avatar with Super Bowl branded digital clothing and team t-shirts across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and the Oculus Quest platform.
Speaking of VR, with the boost in sales of the Oculus VR headsets over the holidays, and the growing commitment from brands, you can expect more VR experiences this year. For example, Bigscreen is a VR app that has provided the capability for fans to gather in the virtual world and watch the game together in the past and most likely will do the same this year.
And of course we can’t forget Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). This year the NFL is offering each attendee a personalized NFT ticket that’s customized with their seat number as a collector’s item. This is the first Super Bowl to use NFTs but they have been used in other sports (e.g., the NBA) and through ticket providers such as Ticketmaster and StubHub. Some are even comparing this year’s crypto invasion of the game to the dot-com advertising rush during the Super Bowl of 2000.
“Old” Technology
We can’t forget about the stalwarts of NFL technology. If you have ever wondered how the skycam works, or how they put that yellow first down line across the field during the game, there’s plenty more for you to explore. The good thing about the NFL is they are always experimenting with emerging technologies in an effort to make the game safer and more enjoyable.
If you want to learn more about the overall use of technology in the NFL, head over to their official website and you’ll find even more information about some of the technologies mentioned here.
One Last Thing
Before you head off to watch the big game, there’s one last bit of technology news that you might find interesting. The Yo-Kai self-driving ramen vending robot is making its general public debut in LA at the Super Bowl. This autonomous ramen vending machine will be moving about the venue and providing mobile restaurant capabilities. Maybe you’ll even see it in the tailgating area.
Perhaps it’s a good thing that the Bills Mafia won’t be at this particular Super Bowl after all. Sorry Buffalo fans.