With the uncertainty surrounding live events in 2021, Arqiva's Chris Alner looks at the broadcast challenges of a congested and fluid sporting calendar and asks whether winning strategies will be defined by conventional wisdom or experimental thinking.
2021 should, in theory, be a big year for sport. Alongside all the usual action, scheduled marque events include the postponed Summer Olympics in Japan and the 2021 UEFA European Championship, a Lions Tour of South Africa, and a Rugby League World Cup. All good news for sports fans and broadcasters.
Of course, there are caveats. Big ones. Aside from the now familiar uncertainty around events going ahead, teams and athletes likely to continue to miss matches and forfeit league positions due to COVID-19 outbreaks, the virus will be the catalyst for a considerable amount of congestion in the sporting calendar. This will be a significant problem towards the middle of the year as events originally scheduled for 2020, such as the Olympics, will now clash with other 2021 major sporting events such as the Lions Tour to South Africa.
Keep eyes on the prize There are a range of issues here. First, multiple events will squeeze audience numbers. Even if some die-hard fans choose to watch multiple, concurrent events on a second or even third screen, most won't.
But getting eyes on content won't be the only problem: scheduling will be tough too, particularly for broadcasters with just one or two linear channels. It seems likely that many will look to leverage investment in online players, and on-demand and catch-up services in response.
I think we'll see broadcasters exploring ways to use new technologies like cloud contribution and distribution to quickly spin up (and then shut down) channels on OTT platforms, affording them more opportunity to combat congestion and reach audiences.
It's not just content availability that will help win the fierce battle for eyeballs in a congested market. The viewing experience for audiences will also be a critical factor too.
Create atmosphere in empty stadia The resumption of live elite sport in 2020 highlighted the issue of empty stadia when it comes to the viewer experience. For many, the lack of a crowd detracts considerably from the excitement. Alongside the option of adding crowd noise, broadcasters have been experimenting with some interesting ways to enhance the experience by adding augmented and virtual reality feeds.
We've also seen some interesting examples of adding real time fan commentary and streamed video of fans to create stadium atmosphere. In one example, basketball's NBA displayed live webcam feeds from remotely attending celebrity viewers and fans on big screens around the court.
These have worked well in some instances, most notably in the National Basketball Association's (NBA) bubble games that closed out the final games of the 2019-20 season and playoffs. It was great to see this kind of innovation, albeit underpinned by a lot of behind the scenes work (in terms of production and logistics) to ensure viewers' high expectations were met.
Experiment but stay focused With necessity the mother of invention, it's important to take these (and other) learnings into 2021 and continue to think out of the box. Whether that's looking at new distribution models, augmenting linear channels or developing new approaches to production. In doing so, we'll be turning live sports events into true media and entertainment showcases, something that will stand us in good stead as social distancing regulations look likely to keep fans out of stadiums for some time.
By definition though, experiments can fail. When you're looking for returns on major sporting investments, there's certainly an element of risk in doing so. The key, I would suggest, is to experiment around production, while ensuring the basics of acquisition and delivery are handled brilliantly (and reliably).
Get comfortable with uncertainty Audience experience aside, there remains a very real threat that many planned events won't go ahead. Despite the best efforts of governing bodies, broadcast partners and others, scheduling in a pandemic is something of a matter of guesswork, and multiple programming contingencies are needed to fill gaps in the schedule when (and if) things don't go to plan.
To my mind this requires something of a cultural shift to ensure broadcasters and rights holders become comfortable with uncertainty. For this to happen, they'll need to be confident in their ecosystem and supply chains. This means that their aggregation, media processing and distribution partners have the technology, the expertise and, crucially, the ambition to adapt to changing circumstances with both agility and confidence. In short, it's a matter of trust.
Work with trusted partners As we move into what is likely to be a very constricted and fluid sporting calendar, it's imperative the industry comes together to plan for uncertainty, so, we can be confident in it. We need to know what works and what doesn't in different scenarios, the kind of contingencies we'll need, when to be experimental and when to double down on what we know works. This way, we'll be prepared for whatever happens. If you'll excuse a final sporting pun, it's about all working together as a team to get the right result.
Talk to Arqiva today about staying in control through uncertainty at sportsandevents@arqiva.com.
Published
15/02/2021
Author
Chris Alner, Director of Commercial Broadcast and Radio
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
04/06/2026
Sony Electronics is introducing the SRG-AS10, a 4K 60p-compatible PTZ auto-frami...
04/06/2026
This recent grad from Spring, TX, led creative-video output for the Aggies' men's basketball team last season and has been producing video and creating ...
04/06/2026
For the first time at a women's golf major, every player in the field will r...
04/06/2026
Three Panasonic PT-RQ45 40,000-lumen 3-Chip DLP projectors made their first live...
04/06/2026
Bitmovin and Akamai have announced a collaboration with NRJ Group, a French mult...
04/06/2026
Telestream will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N7952), demonstrating media work...
04/06/2026
Sony has announced the development of RIALTO 65, a 65mm format image sensor block for the VENICE 2 digital cinema camera, targeting release in the first half of...
04/06/2026
KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America will exhibit at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N8025, June ...
04/06/2026
Bell Media's TSN and RDS are the exclusive Canadian broadcasters of FIFA Wor...
04/06/2026
The Challenge: Receiving Heavy Media Files From Road Games Quickly and ReliablyT...
04/06/2026
MASV, a managed file transfer platform used in broadcast and live sports product...
04/06/2026
NESN has announced the appointment of Fahad Haider as Vice President of Operations and Engineering. Haider returns to NESN, where he previously served as Vice P...
04/06/2026
David J. Halberstam, who spent almost 50 years in sports as a broadcaster and an executive, died June 2 after a years-long battle with brain cancer.
Over his l...
04/06/2026
Although collegiate production programs are tasked with delivering high-quality ...
04/06/2026
California studio, two production trucks, global distribution system are combine...
04/06/2026
New global program empowers and supports storytellers through scriptwriting course and access to industry experts
TikTok and Sundance Institute today announce...
04/06/2026
Steinberg DAWs now boast in-depth Tonalic integration
Celemony's innovative virtual session musician plug-in has just received an update that brings ARA...
04/06/2026
Get Hands-On With Over 20 Mic Brands
GearExpo UK is fast approaching, and if you've been looking for a chance to check out some new mics, then you'r...
04/06/2026
Combos feature new Amplifier Intelligence engine
Positive Grid's latest release sees the company introduce two new combo amplifiers that promise to offe...
04/06/2026
Is Your Job Making You Work this June?
4 June, 2026
Media releases
SBS Launches the World Cup Watchers' Rights Association to Stand Up For Australians&...
04/06/2026
Statement regarding unauthorised use of SBS logos on third party social content
4 June, 2026
Media releases
SBS has become aware of social media posts in c...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming infrastructure, and Akamai, the cybersecurity and cloud computing company that powers and protects business onli...
04/06/2026
American Underground (AU), the Startup Hub of the South and a community of mor...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/06/2026
NVIDIA and Microsoft Reinvent Windows PCs for the Age of Personal AI
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
RTX Spark - a 1-Petaflop Superchip, the Full...
04/06/2026
Inside the Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man Grade
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Simone Grattarola discusses shaping the look in DaVinci Resolve...
04/06/2026
Cine Gear Expo Announces 2026 Awards of Excellence Recipients
Brie Clayton June 3, 2026
0 Comments
Ed Lachman ASC, Caleb Deschanel ASC, and M. David M...
04/06/2026
St. Vincents Live with Orchestra Tour to Feature Berklee Alum Ruby Plume Berklee alumni St. Vincent and Ruby Plume will appear on the same bill across seven d...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
All the Truth in My Lies Coming to Netflix on August 28
Entertainment
04 June 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Download the imag...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
Larry Tanz, VP of Content, EMEA, Delivers a Keynote Speech at ...
04/06/2026
Back to All News
Turn Your Living Room into a Stadium With the New FIFA World ...
04/06/2026
Keeping conversations real on LinkedIn Published on Jun 4, 2026 Categories: Product News
LinkedIn Corporate Communications
Share
LinkedIn
Facebook ...
04/06/2026
BackStory follows four Irish young people as they travel back to their parents' homelands
Modern Irish identity is enriched by cultures and influences from...
04/06/2026
June's forecast with GeForce NOW: 100% chance of gaming.
GeForce NOW is lining up new adventures for the month, from big-name blockbusters to quirky indies...
03/06/2026
SES and Viva, Mexico's ultra low-cost airline, have launched multi-orbit satellite inflight connectivity on Viva's Airbus aircraft. A total of 60 A320s ...
03/06/2026
The College Football Playoff, ESPN, and TNT Sports have announced kick times and...
03/06/2026
RED Digital Cinema will exhibit at Cine Gear Expo 2026 (Booth 33, June 5-6, Universal Studios Lot), hosting three panels and hands-on product demonstrations.
P...
03/06/2026
Roku has announced the Soccer Zone, a dedicated hub for FIFA World Cup 2026 content available across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argent...
With the uncertainty surrounding live events in 2021, Arqiva's Chris Alner looks at the broadcast challenges of a congested and fluid sporting calendar and asks whether winning strategies will be defined by conventional wisdom or experimental thinking.
