“Bloody Hell…The Wi-Fi Actually Works at Old Trafford”
May 13, 2023, is a day Manchester United fans will remember for quite some time, as it was the day that Wi-Fi went live in historic Old Trafford Stadium. For the past several months, Manchester United has been working with Extreme Networks and Verizon Business to deploy Wi-Fi for the first time at Old Trafford to create a more modern and engaging match day experience for fans. And by the looks of the reactions on social media – so far, so good.
The Wi-Fi installation at Old Trafford was no easy feat. Old Trafford, with a capacity of 74,310, is the biggest club football stadium in the United Kingdom and the eleventh-largest in Europe. It was built in 1910, with several renovations and expansions, including drastic repairs in the 1940s after World War II. As a historic stadium, any changes need proper planning to ensure adjustments won’t compromise the iconic architecture or stability. Stadium Wi-Fi deployments, let alone those done in historic venues, are well-known for being difficult due to the abundance of concrete and steel, vast size, and high volume of guests trying to leverage the network.
Social posts from some of Manchester United’s beloved fans show that it’s as if their wishes have come true with the addition of Wi-Fi. And this is just the beginning – Manchester United has big plans to modernize the fan experience with new digital services and make more informed decisions around venue operations based on Wi-Fi analytics data.
“Our collaboration with Extreme Networks is an important step in our drive to enhance and modernize the in-stadium fan experience at Old Trafford, opening up exciting opportunities for the Club to deliver next-generation digital services to fans on matchdays and to visitors throughout the year.” Collette Roche, Chief Operating Officer, Manchester United
Details about the Wi-Fi 6 Deployment at Old Trafford
- The deployment of Extreme Wi-Fi 6 access points at Old Trafford will power faster wireless speeds and low latency, providing the highest quality connection and a performance boost for secure fan-facing technology such as mobile ticketing and other digital offerings.
- ExtremeAnalytics will provide Manchester United with rich data sets and insights around performance and usage, dwell time, and location-based services – in real-time. As a result, the club can continuously review and optimize venue management by identifying stadium bottlenecks, reducing wait times at overcrowded concessions, and analyzing other consumer traffic patterns while gaining insights into fan activity to better customize experiences and pinpoint sponsorship opportunities.
- Network administrators will have a real-time view of the network’s health, performance, and security. Leveraging a single interface, ExtremeCloud IQ will help stadium officials monitor and control Wi-Fi capacity and efficiency, device configuration, traffic patterns, and analytics to streamline network management and performance while scaling IT operations.
Deploying Wi-Fi in stadiums is not an issue for Extreme Networks – the chosen Wi-Fi solutions provider for multiple professional sports leagues and teams. Extreme has been deploying reliable Wi-Fi connectivity in NFL, MLB, NHL, NASCAR, and collegiate stadiums for over ten years. Before the partnership with Manchester United, Extreme also completed deployments at well-known historic venues such as Olympiastadion Berlin, Fenway Park, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and Daytona International Speedway, helping improve the fan experience, drive topline revenue, and increase operational efficiency. To learn more about Extreme’s work with sports venues, visit: https://www.extremenetworks.com/solution/sports-public-venues/