{"id":77605,"date":"2026-02-05T17:44:44","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T20:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tech.einnews.com\/article\/889757776"},"modified":"2026-02-05T17:44:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T20:44:44","slug":"i-spent-the-week-at-the-super-bowl-stadium-and-saw-some-awesome-tech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/02\/05\/i-spent-the-week-at-the-super-bowl-stadium-and-saw-some-awesome-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"I Spent the Week at the Super Bowl Stadium and Saw Some Awesome Tech"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s the (relative) calm before the Super Bowl<\/a> storm. At Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, golf carts buzz around carrying people and equipment. Workers water the lush field as the afternoon sun beams in. And broadcast crews run through rehearsals to make sure everything looks good on your TV<\/a> come game day. <\/p>\n

Earlier this week, I swung by Levi’s Stadium to get a behind-the-scenes look at some of the tech powering the US’s biggest sporting event, which this year takes place on Sunday, Feb. 8, and pits the Seattle Seahawks against the New England Patriots. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

The Super Bowl has long been a staple for football fans, but in recent years, it’s also morphed into a showcase for cutting-edge technology, whether it’s advanced connectivity, improved sound systems or state-of-the-art displays. During my tour, I got a look at everything from high-end camera equipment to security rooms and even the custom-made headsets coaches wear to communicate with players. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

Capturing and editing the big game<\/h2>\n

In the shadow of the stadium sit about two dozen white NBC production trucks, where hundreds of people work together to beam the Super Bowl to viewers at home. Stepping inside the unassuming structures, it’s as if a Mary Poppins-like enchantment has made their interiors much larger than their external dimensions suggest. Numerous screens and swaths of cables cover almost every inch of space, and switchboards are stacked with endless pulsing buttons.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n

Each trailer has a different function. In one, which houses the main control room, the technical director will work with the producer and director to ensure the right shots are being broadcast. An assistant director sees to it that those pricey Super Bowl ads run when they’re supposed to. And in an adjoining room is where the audio gets mixed.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

“A lot of important decisions are made in this room in a split second, so they need to be executed perfectly with zero margin of error,” said Keith Kice, NBC Sports’ senior director of remote tech operations.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n

In another trailer, a team monitors the footage coming from dozens of cameras to match exposure and color, so everything looks as vibrant and true-to-life as possible. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\"Colorful<\/div>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

Cables galore. <\/p>\n

<\/span> Abrar Al-Heeti\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n

Feeding into all of these trailers and, in turn, your TV at home, is footage captured by more than 120 Sony cameras. There are nearly two dozen different types of Sony models used for the Super Bowl, from the HDC-5500<\/a> to cinema cameras like the PXW-FX9<\/a>. These are stationed throughout the field and stadium, and are also attached to drones capturing aerial views of the game. Almost all game-facing cameras have a high frame rate, making plays look smoother while also allowing officials to take a closer look at any replay shots.  <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n

Sony engineers worked alongside the NFL for two years to understand what coaches needed. The most important elements were audio clarity and noise cancelation, so that the dozens of coaches can clearly communicate with each other over thunderous crowd noise.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\"Sony<\/div>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

Sony worked closely with NFL coaches to design custom headsets. These allow coaches to communicate more effectively over crowd noise. They’re also built to withstand both tantrums and harsh climates. <\/p>\n

<\/span> Celso Bulgatti\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n
\"Sony<\/div>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

The Sony NFL headset was surprisingly comfortable to wear.<\/p>\n

<\/span> Celso Bulgatti\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n

Levi’s is one of the few remaining stadiums with a natural grass field. As a result, access is restricted to preserve its appearance — meaning the audio teams had even less time to set up and test equipment before kickoff. <\/p>\n

“Our time on that grass is very, very limited, so we have to get things right. We can’t afford to lose time because systems are not working, especially in the rehearsal process,” said Kirk Powell, lead audio engineer at ATK Audiotek. “That’s why our prep is so important before we get on that field. We have to make sure everything is ready to go.”<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

When Bad Bunny takes the stage at halftime, carts with speakers will be wheeled onto the field just before the show starts. Each is loaded with various L-Acoustics subwoofers and line arrays, as well as additional loudspeakers to fill in sound. That’ll all work together to amp up every corner of the stadium — and, undoubtedly, my living room.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n

The rollout of Wi-Fi 7 at Levi’s Stadium<\/h2>\n

For those lucky enough to be in the stadium on game day, perhaps the most important thing is having good Wi-Fi to instantly brag about the experience online. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Read more:<\/strong> AT&T’s Turbo Live Cuts Through Cellular Congestion, and It’ll Be Live for the Super Bowl<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

“Our bandwidth has gone through the roof,” Kladianos said. “It was tested during the season; the fans really noticed the difference, we noticed the difference, so we’re incredibly excited.”<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

A post shared by CNET (@cnet)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

There are about 1,200 access points across the stadium, which allow devices to connect to the Wi-Fi network. A couple of hundred of these points were added in preparation for the Super Bowl. <\/p>\n

“It’s one seamless adventure, the second you scan your tickets all the way out the gates,” said Anish Patel, the NFL’s director of stadium and wireless engineering. “As you walk through the fan events — between tailgate, merchandise, concessions — it’s all one large sort of wireless network that we extend for game day.”<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\"Massive<\/div>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

Many teams work together to ensure safety throughout the stadium’s campus.<\/p>\n

<\/span> Abrar Al-Heeti\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Maintaining security on and off the field<\/h2>\n

The Super Bowl is considered a SEAR 1<\/a> (or Special Event Assessment Rating) event, which, according to the US Department of Homeland Security, means it requires “extensive federal interagency support.” So it’s no surprise that security was such a big focus on one of my tours. <\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

I saw a room on one of the top floors of Levi’s called the Security Operations Center, in which personnel can flag and prevent various cybersecurity risks, so there aren’t any disruptions or delays to the game.<\/p>\n

This center pulls in and displays data from a variety of Cisco’s cybersecurity products, including Splunk, Cisco Umbrella and Cisco Secure Firewall. These systems can monitor for any suspicious activity in real time and immediately identify threats. That could include bad actors trying to take over the PA system or displays, for example, or anyone impersonating the NFL brand. These systems were set up about a month before the Super Bowl to ensure any early threats are identified. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\"Super<\/div>\n

<\/div>

<\/p>\n

This is the Security Operations Center at Levi’s Stadium, where cybersecurity threats are monitored.<\/p>\n

<\/span> Abrar Al-Heeti\/CNET<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There’s also an NFL control room, in which feeds from hundreds of security cameras around the stadium are on display. The NFL and stadium personnel, along with local, state and federal agencies, can monitor any suspicious activity on the ground. Emergency responders will also be stationed in this room, ready to intervene if necessary. Crews can watch for bottlenecks, too, and make calls to divert foot traffic as people enter and exit the stadium.  <\/p>\n

\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

… a showcase for cutting-edge technology<\/span>, whether it's advanced … Big Game and the Tech<\/span> Behind the Broadcast | Tech<\/span> Today 02:47 … ' senior director of remote tech<\/span> operations. Here's where … full rollout of the wireless tech<\/span> for the first time during …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77605\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}