The San Francisco 49ers hosted their first preseason home game Sunday afternoon against the Denver Broncos. The match-up of two perennial NFL championship contenders was also noteworthy for being the inaugural game at Levi’s Stadium, located in Santa Clara, California, the heart of Silicon Valley. Levi’s Stadium isn’t just located in Silicon Valley — it embodies Silicon Valley. The 49ers spent an estimated $125 million on technology to make Levi’s Stadium the undisputed champion of wired, and wireless, stadiums.
The 49ers use of technology is more akin to its Silicon Valley neighbors like Apple, Google and Facebook. In fact, the 49ers hired over 30 technologists, including the former leader of Facebook’s IT department, to build the most technology-advanced stadium in the league. This much attention on technology is not just for bragging rights. Like many companies today, the 49ers want to create a better product and service — in this case, football — using technology. And, being in Silicon Valley doesn’t hurt for a company or football team that wants to go high tech. The 49ers leveraged partnerships with tech powerhouses like Brocade, Comcast, Intel and Yahoo, and a host of other IT vendors in the Valley, to pull off this technology marvel.
Dubbed the “smart stadium,” Levi’s Stadium is loaded with technology that would make any geek stand up and cheer. For starters, there are 680 free Wi-Fi access points distributed around the stadium. That’s nearly one access point for every hundred fans. The access points are supported by a blazing, 40-Gbps fiber-optic cable backbone that delivers broadband speeds 40 times faster than any other NFL stadium.
Catering to the ubiquitous smartphone and tablet users, the team developed an app that will change the fan experience at the stadium, which was key for the team as well as the NFL. Why? Because increasingly, teams need to differentiate and give fans a compelling reason to leave the comfort of their couches and go to the stadium to watch the game.
To that end, fans can use the 49ers app to take some of the hassles out of a stadium game. For instance, the app can lead fans from their cars directly to their seats and back after the game, reducing one of the big pain points of attending a crowded game. Getting around the stadium is more convenient, too, as the app can guide fans to the nearest bathroom or stadium restaurant. As most of us know, getting up for a hot dog or popcorn could mean missing a game-changing play. But the 49ers app now lets all fans — not just luxury box ticket holders — order food on their phones or tablets and have it delivered directly to their seats. And if you do have to leave your seat, you can watch high-definition replays on your mobile device immediately after the play.
In addition to the fan’s in-stadium experience, the 49ers are leveraging technology to improve the team’s on-field performance. The team has partnered with SAP to provide data and statistical software that helps the 49ers track player performance as well as scout for new players. Of course, data analysis for picking players was made famous when Billy Beane of the Oakland A’s crunched numbers to identify key metrics and player attributes to win baseball games. The A’s, a small market team with a relatively small payroll, were able to leverage data analysis to find unheralded players and effectively compete with deep-pocket teams like the New York Yankees.
Levi’s Stadium is probably the most eco-friendly stadium in the NFL as well, sporting a 27,000 square foot green roof, which is used to grow 40 different species of local vegetation. The stadium also has over 1,000 solar panels that will make energy consumption nearly net neutral for the team’s 10 home games.
The San Francisco 49ers are forward-thinking for a football team with respect to the use of technology. Most of us think of football organizations as old-school tough guys that don’t need no stinking technology — and certainly have no need for a chief technology officer or an IT department. However, the 49ers understand what technology can do for its business and have gone all in. They’ve figured out that businesses run better when they leverage technology for the win.
Raj Sabhlok is the president of Zoho Corp., which is the parent company of Zoho.com and ManageEngine. Follow him @rajsabhlok.
