Through data sets and metrics, technology is changing the way football is played, officiated and understood. Yet the sport’s capacity for change may prove even broader. Away from match-altering decisions, May 12 in Munich saw Audi hint at another side of football’s digital innovation – a possible revolution in pre-match build-up and press duties. Audi presented a world’s first: delivering a holographic press conference with the help of Canadian company ARHT.
The event – unveiling two of the three teams invited to this summer’s Audi Cup tournament hosted by Bayern Munich – took place at the German club's Säbener Strasse training ground. Bayern Munich manager Carlo Ancelotti stepped on to the stage alone, sitting to the left of a lengthy conference table. Ancelotti awaited the arrival of his colleagues as attending press looked on. He didn't have to wait long, despite the fact that neither of the two managers about to join the conference were even in the country.
One after the other, the crowd was introduced to Ancelotti, Atlético Madrid manager Diego Simeone and Liverpool FC manager Jürgen Klopp. With the introductions of Simeone and Klopp, graphical flourishes appeared on the holographic 3D screen set behind the conference table. Then both were "present". Each spaced from Ancelotti and one another, each sat behind physical microphones, and each ostensibly there in all three dimensions.
“For me there is no major difference to other press conferences”, said Klopp. “Except that you are not here with me.” Klopp and Simeone spoke live from Liverpool and Atlético Madrid respectively, each broadcast from the training ground of their club and “beamed”, according to Klopp, into the Säbener Strasse conference room. Asked how long the trip from the training ground to the press conference took, Simeone replied, “It took me five minutes to be here with you”. Adding, “it is nice, it is a novelty. And I can see my colleagues right here next to me.”
The benefits of what Ancelotti referred to as “really interesting technology” are easily realised. The conference saved Klopp and Simeone an approximate, combined, 5,300 miles and 15 hours in travel. Reproduced many times over, holographic press conferences such as these may represent huge savings both in football and elsewhere. Beyond the event, the conference’s innovation speaks to the manifold changes technology is driving across the world of sports.
The conference is just one example. This summer, the WIRED / Audi Driven to Win series will be exploring many more – looking at training and match-days, broadcasting and fan viewing experiences, and the changes to the very stadiums hosting sporting events.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
