Creating a unique fan experience by using 5G: interview with Eike Humpert

Eike Humpert, Head of Digitalisation at VfL Wolfsburg, shared his learnings on 5G in a stadium. As they are the first club in Germany with a fully operational 5G antenna, VfL Wolfsburg has a unique perspective on the topic.

Interview with Eike Humpert:

Where are you currently on the implementation of 5G? 

We are the first German stadium which has a 5G antenna integrated and fully operating. We did this together with Vodafone and DFL. We are currently doing tests and will present our app in March. Our plan is to integrate the 5G experience application in our own club app within the next season or the season after, depending on how quickly we can go for a full 5G stadium together with Vodafone,

What do you believe is the main asset of a 5G stadium? 

Live data can be used for fan experience in many ways. For example, we have a big issue in Germany concerning VAR. The fans in front of the TV know what happens faster than the fans in the stadium. One option would be to enrich the experience and show them maybe the scenes from the video referee during his decision, which could improve the stadium experience.

“5G is not only a tool to improve fan experience. Once 5G is completely implemented in our stadium, we will review all the internal processes, test them with 5G technology, and possibly make them more efficient.“

What data-driven experiences are currently being offered to improve the stadium experience?

Real-time data experiences are still in its infancy at VfL Wolfsburg. One example of what we are trying to do is that we provide live statistics in our app during the match. For each player you can find his speed, crossed distance, number of shots and passes, etc. In addition, we try to provide and communicate live statistics via social media, with a slight delay. For now, we are experimenting with features such as real-time statistics, player trajectories, player highlighting, free kick distance line visualisation, etc.. Once we have our holistic data strategy in place, we will roll-out with a big bang!

Access his presentation on the ESSMA Knowledge Platform