Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Production

08/05/2025

Tech Focus: Advancing Immersion in Sports Broadcasting with AR and Virtual Production By Michael Burns, SVG Europe

Thursday, May 8, 2025 - 11:10 am

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

Immersive technologies are reshaping sports broadcasting with solutions that enable more dynamic and engaging productions. From AR graphics to live virtual production studios, advancements in these technologies are driving efficiency and enhancing storytelling.

Broadcasters are increasingly leaning into immersive sports experiences to capture the attention of digital-first audiences, says Yavuz Bahadiroglu, head of sales (EMEA) for Zero Density. This demand is growing across top-tier and regional broadcasters who see the potential of virtual and AR production.

The reason for the growth is because viewers want to be informed and entertained , says David Jorba, VP of business development, broadcast at Disguise. Younger audiences want to watch a gamified virtual experience because that is how they like to interact with the information they consume. However, older audiences might still want to see more traditional brick and mortar' spaces. What works best is to have hybrid spaces where you can mix traditional production with virtual storytelling. Fans are looking for deep information with enlightening data visualisation and analytics. This is only possible through virtual technology and immersion.

Disguise has seen a lot of deployment of its technology in sports, says Jorba, including XR productions using an LED volume, as seen in ESPN Studio C and DAZN in Italy. These are full virtual environments where the presenters and guests are immersed in the content and can interact with it to deepen the storytelling, he adds.

Fans are looking for deep information with enlightening data visualisation and analytics. This is only possible through virtual technology and immersion

Broadcasters constantly need to produce more and more content; they need to do more with less but with the best quality possible. LED XR environments bring the quality virtual production you see in film into highly dynamic multipurpose production spaces. A second factor is powerful data visualisation. You need the capability to build strong storytelling graphics that feel realistic and bring a new perspective to the presentation. And lastly, you need realism. The virtual environments that fly you over to the events or allow you to analyse the game from the inside with a unique virtual perspective need to be highly realistic to eliminate the barrier between reality and virtual immersion.

Sports broadcasters worldwide are integrating virtual production to transform their coverage by enhancing storytelling, increasing fan engagement, offering eye-catching sponsored content and optimising production workflows, agrees Bahadiroglu. Viaplay Group has used Zero Density's Reality to build sophisticated virtual studios that seamlessly blend real and virtual elements. This approach allows broadcasters to present pre-game analysis, halftime discussions, and post-match breakdowns with unparalleled visual depth, making complex game strategies easier for audiences to understand.

Then there's the virtual window' studio, a hybrid space that combines physical sets with immersive LED walls and floors. Jorba says ESPN Sports Center and ESPN NFL Studio exemplify this approach, where the camera can shift between a virtual set and a traditional video wall effect.

In my opinion, it's an adoption process that will not stop, he adds. Eventually, all green screen environments will end up being LED XR volumes. All traditional video walls will transform into virtual window spaces with high-resolution video playback and Unreal Engine graphics. If anything, the holdback has been waiting for the right occasion. Most broadcasters started looking at LED XR two years ago. They spent time understanding the technology, the efficiency it provided, and the costs associated with it. Today, as they build a new studio or replace an old one, they are moving into this technology.

A third application is augmented reality graphics, which are increasingly being integrated into live sports broadcasts. For example, the Portland Trailblazers have used AR graphics to enhance fan engagement, providing real-time data visualisation directly on the broadcast feed, says Jorba.

Alex Roriz, vice president, global partner business strategy & growth, wTVision, agrees that AR graphics make sports broadcasts more immersive, informative, accessible, and exciting.

wTVision is integrating applications such as real-time player tracking and other statistics into AR. We have two kinds of augmented reality, one is tied to the field, so might be, for example, the distance to the goal in a free kick, or the team logos on the pitch, or a virtual advertisement, says Roriz. We are using that in the Portuguese league, in the Belgian league, in the Spanish league and other major events. It's trackless and so can be used in any arena; we use video recognition and the lines of the field to generate the tracking.

The company's R Space Engine can power everything from simple statistical displays to complex, three-dimensional representations of sporting data, and Unreal Engine is also used for photorealistic productions.

Sports broadcasters worldwide are integrating virtual production to transform their coverage by enhancing storytelling, increasing fan engagement, offering eye-catching sponsored content and optimising production workflows

For data-driven AR applications in sports, our render engine provides real-time connectivity, says Roriz. We have integrations with data sets and scoreboards from at least 32 different sports, and integration with many data sources from different countries.

The technology is certified for FIBA'
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2025/05/08/tech-focus-advancing-immersion-...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

22/09/2026

Young Journalist Award 2026: Meet the Final 12

From Malaysia to Mexico and from DR Congo to Ukraine, this year's 12 finalists for the 2026 Thomson Foundation Young Journalist of the Year award tell extra...

22/09/2026

ESPN, Precision Lasers Light Up NHL Player Media Tour in Las Vegas

The annual preseason content-gathering event brought 36 NHL players to Las Vegas, where ESPN used 2.5 kilowatts of laser power and a motion-control camera syste...

22/09/2026

Neumann Introduces KK 104 A and KK 105 A Wireless Capsule Heads

Neumann has introduced the KK 104 A (cardioid) and KK 105 A (supercardioid) wireless capsule heads, succeeding the KK 204 and KK 205. The new capsules are compa...

22/09/2026

NFL and TMRW Sports Announce Pro Flag Showcase During Super Bowl LXI Week

The NFL and TMRW Sports have announced a new annual Pro Flag Showcase to be held during Super Bowl LXI week in Los Angeles. The event will feature top flag foot...

22/09/2026

Washington State University Unveils New Daktronics Video Board and Audio System at Gesa Field

Washington State University has unveiled a new end zone video display and audio ...

22/09/2026

SVG Sit-Down: Disney's Dave Johnson on ESPN's New 4K HDR Distribution Pipeline and What It Means for Super Bowl LXI and Beyond

Disney's SVP of Live Operations and Engineering details the technology behin...

22/09/2026

Cosm Promotes Mazen Alawar to SVP of Marketing, Alexis Scalice to VP of Cosm Studios

Cosm has announced two senior promotions. Mazen Alawar has been promoted to SVP,...

22/09/2026

Mississippi State University Extends Camera Relationship with KOKUSAI DENKI

Mississippi State University's University Television Center has purchased four KOKUSAI DENKI SK-UHD7000-S2 cameras since 2024, with plans to add two more, a...

22/09/2026

Net Insight Appoints Christine Kjellvard as Interim CFO

Net Insight has announced that Christine Kjellvard will assume the role of interim Chief Financial Officer on November 1, 2026. Kjellvard has previously held in...

22/09/2026

Net Insight Launches Zyntai TimeNode Access PTP Grandmaster for Edge Sites

Net Insight has announced Zyntai TimeNode Access, a compact PTP Grandmaster designed for distributed edge sites. The product carries secure, precise time across...

22/09/2026

The Weight Explores the High Cost of Freedom in the Depression Era

Sam Hazeldine, Austin Amelio, Padraic McKinley, Julia Jones, and Ethan Hawke attend the premiere of The Weight at The Ray Theatre on January 26, 2026, in Park...

22/09/2026

Avalanche Tones introduce Noise Suite

Second high-gain tone plug-in released Following on from their debut release, Chainsaw Suite, Avalanche Tones have announced the launch of their second plug...

22/09/2026

LW6 wireless headphones from Lewitt Audio

Uncompressed audio with below 6ms of latency Lewitt's have just introduced their first pair of headphones which, despite being aimed primarily at studio...

22/09/2026

Neumann launch the KK 104 A & KK 105 A

Two new capsule heads for Sennheiser wireless systems Neumann have announced the upcoming launch of the KK 104 A and KK 105 A, a pair of new premium condens...

22/09/2026

Apogee Plugins Are Moving to Plugin Alliance

Apogee Plugins Are Moving to Plugin Alliance We're excited to share an important update about the future of Apogee plugins. Apogee plugins are moving to Pl...

22/09/2026

SipRadius honored with a Technology And Engineering Emmy...

Parkland, Florida, US, September 22, 2026: SipRadius, widely recognized for making content processing and connectivity secure and seamless, has been honored wit...

22/09/2026

VanityFilter 3.1.5 adds project files and adjustable protection around lips, brows and ears

VanityFilter 3.1.5 adds project files and adjustable protection around lips, bro...

22/09/2026

Chile's TV+ Modernizes Broadcast Operations with Blackmagic Design

Chile's TV Modernizes Broadcast Operations with Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton September 22, 2026 0 Comments URSA Broadcast G2 brings versatility...

22/09/2026

OWC Shares Sneak Peek at Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Pricing

OWC Shares Sneak Peek at Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Pricing Brie Clayton September 22, 2026 0 Comments Image courtesy of Deposit Photos Business and ...

22/09/2026

Berklee's First Homecoming Block Party Brings Alumni Home for Global Music Festival

Berklee's First Homecoming Block Party Brings Alumni Home for Global Music F...

22/09/2026

New TVU Pocket Offers Broadcast Features In Phone-Sized Unit

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Operative Launches Unified Platform for Advertising and Broadcast Management

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Element Launches New TiVo-Powered Smart TVs in the U.S.

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

NOAA Taps Tomorrow.io for Improved U.S. Weather Forecasts

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Gray Media Promotes Tim Maloney to GM and Director of Sales at WBKO

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Reports: Paramount Reaches Settlement with State AGs in Antitrust Suit

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

New Research Lays Out Streaming Services Best Defense Against Churn

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Sinclair Expands The National News Desk

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Paramount Settles Antitrust Lawsuit over WBD Merger

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

U.S. Broadband Industry Investment Hits $92.6 Billion

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

22/09/2026

Sky commissions Tupac murder trial documentary from Passion Pictures & Propagate Content

From Academy Award-winning Passion Pictures and BAFTA-winning director Marian Mo...

22/09/2026

Wi-Fi, phones and power lines: understanding EMF exposure

Whether it be from the sun or from our phones and other devices, we are all exposed to electromagnetic radiation in some shape or form. With the dramatic growth...

22/09/2026

Comscore's latest AI Intelligence Report Shows Competition Intensifying as Claude and Gemini Gain Ground on ChatGPT

Comscore's latest AI Intelligence Report Shows Competition Intensifying as C...

22/09/2026

The Factory-X Project Sets Standards for Data Sovereignty in Industry

The Factory-X Project Sets Standards for Data Sovereignty in Industry Arvato Systems Brings Digital Sovereignty to Industrial Practice Factory-X Successfully...

22/09/2026

Apple opens Apple Music Hall, a\u00A0state-of-the-art live music venue in London - PRESS RELEASE - Posted on 21 September 2026

LONDON Apple today announced the opening of Apple Music Hall, a brand-new state-...

22/09/2026

Young creativity across the island of Ireland takes centre stage as sixth RT This is Art! competition launches

RT , Creative Ireland and Shared Island Initiative ask young artists to respon...

22/09/2026

NVIDIA Isaac ROS 5.0 Advances Agentic, Open Source Robotics Development

To build and deploy sophisticated robotics applications that can perceive, reason and act in dynamic environments, developers need new physical AI models and to...

21/09/2026

Manifold Taps Ryhaan Williams for North America COO Post

Manifold Technologies, developer of software-defined, FPGA-accelerated infrastructure for live production, has named Ryhaan Williams as Chief Commercial Officer...

21/09/2026

SNS Wins IAMT Best Journal Article Award

Studio Network Solutions (SNS) has won Best Journal Article at the 2026 IAMT Impact Awards for What Video Editors Need When Everything Is Changing Around Them,...

21/09/2026

MLW Announces Streaming Deal with Tubi for Weekly FUSION Series

Major League Wrestling (MLW) has announced a streaming distribution agreement with Tubi for its weekly series MLW FUSION. Beginning September 17, new episodes w...

21/09/2026

Adam Smith Named Chairman of Direct-to-Consumer at Disney Entertainment

Disney Entertainment has announced that Adam Smith has been named Chairman, Direct-to-Consumer, with responsibility for Disney and Hulu including product, engi...

21/09/2026

United Airlines and DISH to Offer Live Football on Starlink-Enabled Seatback Screens

United Airlines and DISH have announced an agreement to bring live professional ...

21/09/2026

SES to Provide Satellite Distribution for JioStar Channels Across India

SES and JioStar have announced a multi-year agreement under which SES will provide satellite distribution services for JioStar's television channel portfoli...

21/09/2026

Detroit Red Wings Announce Detroit SportsNet Broadcast Details for 2026-27 Season

The Detroit Red Wings have announced details for their inaugural season on Detro...

21/09/2026

Manifold Technologies Appoints Ryhaan Williams as CCO for North America

Manifold Technologies has appointed Ryhaan Williams as Chief Commercial Officer for North America, effective October 1, 2026. Based in Jacksonville, Florida, Wi...

21/09/2026

DAZN Pick Up L.A. Kings DTC Streaming Rights; ABTV Will Continue as Local TV Home

Angels Broadcast Television (ABTV), the local television home of the Los Angeles...