
FOX Sports Takes Virtual Production to New Heights With Groundbreaking Basilica of Soccer' Set for EURO 24, Copa America Coverage Virtual environment merges LED and AR to create immersive production environment By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Friday, June 14, 2024 - 1:35 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
After launching groundbreaking studio projects in recent years with its NASCAR virtual studio in Charlotte, NC; LED-fueled FOX NFL Sunday studio in L.A.; and AR-powered 2022 FIFA World Cup set in Doha, FOX Sports is changing the game once again with a new 360-degree immersive XR studio environment for its coverage of the Euro 24 and Copa America.
With every project, we get better, and this project provides a genuine blank canvas for us to work with, says Gary Hartley, EVP/creative director, FOX Sports. Between the power of the technology and the creativity of the design, I think the sky's the limit in terms of what we can do now.
The two-story virtual studio based at FOX's cutting-edge Stage A in L.A. boasts 5,130 sq. ft. of LED space and is anchored by extended-realty (XR) multicam technology driven by Unreal Engine, Vizrt, and Stype. Working with New Zealand-based architecture firm Architecture van Brandenburg, FOX Sports designed a virtual set for its coverage of the two tournaments; the set features a full 360-degree immersive environment live from Stage A.
Whenever we are [evaluating new technologies], we often talk about UVD - unique visual difference - and this is the epitome of that, says Zac Fields, SVP, graphic tech and innovation, FOX Sports. Our studio here in L.A. is LED-based. Typically, we use AR and XR only as a set extension above the LED, but, with this 360-degree environment, we have the best of both worlds: we can leverage all the LED firepower from our state-of-the-art stage and facility here in L.A. but also extend the volume via AR in all directions.
Match Made in Creative Heaven: Integrating the Set and the Animations With EURO 24 and Copa America taking place across two continents, FOX opted to host its studio coverage for both tournaments from this central set on the FOX Studio Lot in Los Angeles. Inspired by beautiful palaces around the world, the set's new technology allows the production to move through various areas with eye-catching imagery and graphics showcasing team colors, matchups, player stats, and more. The dynamic backgrounds will feature the cities where the matches are played, fully immersing audiences into the cities across Germany and the U.S. for the two tournaments.
This project - more than any other that we've done so far with AR, VR, and XR - tightly integrates our animation and our set, says Michael Dolan, SVP, Design, FOX Sports. We're literally painting the set with country colors and matchups and player graphics. The architecture is essentially the carrier for all the graphic design. As opposed to just floating [graphics] up in space, which is what we would typically do, we can now take over an entire room and drape it with [graphics] related to the topic.
Inside the Tech: Sprawling Virtual World Driven by Unreal Engine The floor area of interior volume is 56,840 sq. ft. (290 x 196 ft.); the central hall of the environment is 165 ft. long x 125 ft. wide x 65 ft. high.
The [aspect] that takes this to another level is the enormous scale of it, says Fields. We built this out with specific segments in mind for the production team to use. We will have an area for formations, an area to come back for the halftime score, an area for a sit-down interviews - those were presented to the architect early on. It's probably one of the reasons the location ended up being so enormous: they were essentially building rooms that were designated for specific [show segments].
A whopping 23 Unreal Engines provide the stunning AR and XR visuals, and the show is controlled via Erizos Studio software. With 5,130 sq ft of LED wall and floor panels, the full LED size is 19 ft. 8 in. high x 46 ft. wide x 24 ft. 7 in. deep.
Stage A is outfitted with a 24-ft. Technocrane, and FOX deploys Stype camera-tracking systems and the StypeLand plugin for Unreal Engine to enable VR creation with its own chroma-keyer software.
Using Ghost Frame technology, FOX has provided the director up to six virtual cameras to produce the show within the 360 environment (the system is capable of up to six virtual cameras). FOX marries the tracking data from the camera with the data from the Unreal scene to allow the director to fly around from one set location to the next.
The question became how we could get from one space to another so it feels like we're truly utilizing the entire 56,000-sq.-ft. environment, says Fields. That's where we started having conversations about using virtual cameras to merge what's real and what's [virtual]. The virtual cameras allow us to fly in and out of sets.
There are multiple exterior shots that reflect time of day - daytime, dusk, nighttime, etc. - in this environment, representing Miami and Germany, he continues. This will allow us to go outside the set and show a logo bump while going to break or an interesting cityscape coming back from commercial. You can do that only with a virtual camera because you're traveling a great distance within that [virtual space].
Inside the control room, the production resembles a traditional operation with a standard front bench running the show. In addition, two set-content operators drive all the content, including environmental, data, and animations. In addition, two set-content producers work closely with these operators to create elements during the show.
That choreography comes from all the experience we have doing it in Charlotte, says Hartley. I can't emphasize enough the value of th
More from Sports Video Group
15/04/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BBC World Service has selected its IP ...
15/04/2026
LiveU has announced an expansion of its collaboration with Sony Corporation, add...
15/04/2026
Ateme has announced a collaboration with NVIDIA to support live Apple Immersive ...
15/04/2026
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has announced a multi-year partnership renewal with DAZN DACH, covering Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, and...
15/04/2026
Canon U.S.A. (NAB Booth C3825) today took the lid off of the CINE-SERVO 40-1200m...
15/04/2026
Panasonic Video and Audio Systems North America and NEP Group will demonstrate a...
15/04/2026
For the fourth year running, independent analysts found businesses across all industries and verticals pay roughly the same amount in fees as they spend on stor...
15/04/2026
The Soccer Tournament (TST) has announced a media rights deal with NBC Sports to...
15/04/2026
JB&A will host the Pre-NAB 2026 Technology Event on April 17-18 at Flamingo Las Vegas, ahead of NAB Show. The event features hands-on demonstrations and technic...
15/04/2026
The Sennheiser Group will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth 4931, Central Hall), with demonstrations from Sennheiser, Neumann, and Merging across three areas: Rel...
15/04/2026
NAB Show 2026 will take place April 18-22 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, wi...
15/04/2026
AI-Media has announced the LEXI Text Encoder and LEXI Voice Encoder at NAB Show 2026, the company's first new encoder hardware release in more than a decade...
15/04/2026
Italian camera support manufacturer Cartoni will introduce several new products at NAB Show 2026 (Booth C6540, Central Hall), including the Master 30 OB fluid h...
15/04/2026
Lawo and swXtch.io have announced a memorandum of understanding at NAB Show 2026, under which Lawo will explore incorporating swXtch.io's groundSwXtch softw...
15/04/2026
CacheFly will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W3129, April 19-22, Las Vegas Convention Center), showcasing three new additions to its content delivery platform:...
15/04/2026
Synamedia has announced GO Shorts, a new module within its Synamedia Go OTT platform that uses AI to convert an operator's existing content library into a s...
15/04/2026
The NAB Show kicks off on Saturday, and the SVG and SVG Europe editorial teams a...
15/04/2026
AJA Video Systems has announced an agreement to acquire Comprimato, a live video encoding and processing software company. The deal will unite the two companies...
15/04/2026
Prime Video Sports' NBA Playoffs coverage, which includes the entire SoFi NB...
15/04/2026
Just announced, the SDE standard provides a unified method and file format to ensure consistent and reliably comparable noise predictions
Sports and entertainm...
14/04/2026
Haivision has announced the Falkon X4, a 5G mobile video transmitter for live broadcast and remote production. The device will be showcased at NAB Show 2026.
...
14/04/2026
Founded by veterans of the production-truck world, Stripe TV was born out of a d...
14/04/2026
Grass Valley has expanded its partnership with Studio Berlin, supplying 12 LDX 135 UHD/HDR camera systems and 12 LDX 180 Super 35mm cinematic cameras, including...
14/04/2026
LTN has announced two senior appointments ahead of NAB Show 2026: Mark Romano as Vice President, Multichannel Platforms, and Edward Cox as Vice President, Sales...
14/04/2026
Sennheiser and Italian rental company Agor have begun preparations for their Eu...
14/04/2026
DAZN and ADI Predictstreet have announced a partnership to integrate ADI Predict...
14/04/2026
Deltatre has announced the completion of a direct-to-fan website and app for Leg...
14/04/2026
Daktronics, will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 in partnership with Grass Valley at Booth C2408, Las Vegas Convention Center, April 19-22.
Daktronics will showcase a...
14/04/2026
Backblaze will host a series of partner presentations at NAB Show 2026 (Booth N1259, North Hall), open to all exhibition hall badge holders. Showcase partners i...
14/04/2026
BRAHMA AI will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2415, West Hall), demonstrating its Enterprise AI Content Platform for media, entertainment, sports, and technol...
14/04/2026
Bridge Technologies has announced that its VB440 production probe has been integrated into NEP Platform, NEP Group's software orchestration system. The inte...
14/04/2026
Clear-Com will introduce new products and demonstrate its communications ecosystem for broadcast and live production at NAB Show 2026 (Booth C5807, April 19-22)...
14/04/2026
EZDRM will use NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2260) to introduce the Revenue Security Prism, a framework for combining multiple security technologies to protect streamin...
14/04/2026
Telos Alliance will introduce the following products at NAB Show 2026:
TV and Media
Telos Infinity MK2 Panels: A new generation of hardware control panels for...
14/04/2026
Panasonic Video and Audio Systems North America will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth C3509), demonstrating IP- and IT-based production solutions for sports, bro...
14/04/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
14/04/2026
Blackmagic Design will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth N2502). CEO Grant Petty s product announcement livestream is available at youtube.com. The company announ...
14/04/2026
The deal establishes a close strategic alignment' between the iconic cinema...
14/04/2026
BIGSHOT Media, with support from Teradek, produced untamed African mountain-bike race' with daily coverage and highlights show
The 2026 Absa Cape EPIC, an...
14/04/2026
The Sports Video Group (SVG) today announced the launch of the SVG AI Innovation...
13/04/2026
Telos Alliance has announced that J nger Audio has joined the EBU ADM Implementers Group (ADM-IG) as a founding member. The group is focused on advancing ADM an...
13/04/2026
Grass Valley will demonstrate its Alliance Partner ecosystem at NAB Show 2026 (Booth C2408, Central Hall, April 19-22), showing AMPP integrations across live pr...
13/04/2026
Media Links will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2033), demonstrating IP transport solutions for live production including hitless protection technology, Xscen...
13/04/2026
NBC Sports has announced a programming, distribution, and sales partnership with...
13/04/2026
FloSports has promoted Chief Operating Officer Jayar Donlan to President, effective immediately. In his new role, Donlan will lead the company's commercial,...
13/04/2026
PanCam Pictures, the documentary production company founded by Paul Camarata, us...
13/04/2026
Mimir will exhibit at NAB Show 2026 (North Hall, Booth N2850), demonstrating its cloud-native media production platform with new capabilities including Mimir Cu...
13/04/2026
BBright has announced that its IP Gateway now supports the Reliable Internet Stream Transport (RIST) protocol. The addition will be introduced at NAB Show 2026 ...
13/04/2026
Net Insight has been awarded a development project through the European Space Agency's Navigation Innovation and Support Program (NAVISP), with co-funding f...
13/04/2026
intoPIX will exhibit at NAB Show 2026, marking the company's 20th anniversary. The company will demonstrate its JPEG XS compression portfolio and IPMX-appro...