The first show for real football players
At the end of 2015, Adidas kicked off its EURO Cup 2016 with an exceptional experience for football fans. The brand opened the doors of its new ephemeral and connected stadium to a select few, who were, for a moment, in the shoes of national team players.
“A ‘euphoric’ experience.”
Future Arena: a virtual stadium
Shortly before Adidas, the basketball brand Jordans launched “The Last Shot”, which featured the best performances of the famous basketball player Michael Jordans in a virtual arena. The concept has had a small effect, Adidas did not wait long to launch an interactive football stadium with a convincing motive: the arrival of the EURO Cup 2016.
The future Arena is the first fully connected football stadium, relying solely on technology. In this stadium, the brand no longer offers a show to the fans, but to the players who are on the field.
With 50,000 people in the stands for 10 five-a-side football players, the place seems surreal, at least the opposite of an indoor football match between friends.
A new game experiences
Privileged, the football fans who tested the device lived an experience they describe as “euphoric”. In conditions identical to a European Cup match, the players were able to experience the greatest emotions of football.
The scene was set as soon as they entered the locker room. After putting on the jerseys and shoes provided by Adidas, the pre-match adrenaline rushes through the players, and then the pressure mounts as the players walk through the tunnel, which vibrates with the shouts of the fans. As they take to the field, you can almost hear the excitement in the crowd’s noise as they cheer the 10 participants as great football talents.
High-tech device
Once inside the stadium, the participants discover a three-level enclosure, displaying 4 giant screens projecting 50,000 fans in 360 degrees.
Everything is planned. At the same time as the technicians control the public’s reactions to the game (20 reactions were recorded during one of OL’s home games), the video system alternates between real filming and the multiplication of visual and sound special effects. Live, the players witness the crowd’s outbursts, which seem more real than real thanks to the smoke bombs, tifos and other illusions that have been set up.
The outcome of the experience? It is difficult to hear the screams of the crowd, and the soccer shoes are a bit slippery, but the moment remains unique.
Apart from a few journalists, only the participants selected from the Adidas registrations were able to test the Future Arena. The device, which is currently intended for sports events, could still expand its audience by becoming a permanent fixture, but the cost of registration may be just as surreal as the stadium …
The edition.