The Los Angeles Rams, through a partnership with marketing company Stagwell, delivered a next-generation AR experience to fans watching the Sunday game at the stadium and home.
The fan-focused technology experience left fans at the SoFi Stadium and those watching the broadcast at home speechless. During a December 4 game against the Seattle Seahawks, fans who downloaded Stagwell’s ARound Stadium app were able to join a shared AR experience, sponsored by digital finance company SoFi, which also happens to have naming rights for the stadium.
ARound uses 3D spatial computing to localize content to individual users, allowing 70,000 visitors to see the same real-time 3D effects and participate in the same shared experiences.
These shared experiences are at the core of “revenge living,” a term denoting a general need for more connection and authentic experiences following years of lockdown. More and more brands are turning to create unique and memorable experiences to repay the loyalty their customers have shown through times of hardship, instead of just reverting to regular advertising paths.
Many of these unique experiences revolve around VR and AR technologies. The Los Angeles Rams are only the most recent example of using AR at a stadium, but Gillette has done the same thing quite recently.
Once they downloaded the app ARound Stadium app, fans were able to participate in the shared experience. By pointing their phones toward the field, they could enjoy different kinds of shared experiences like 3D callouts of Rams players and see effects like Rampede and Make Noise on Ram’s Infinity Screen, even if they stayed at home.
"Fans come to the stadium to feel closer to the game, to the players, and to other fans. We developed ARound to enhance those feelings through highly immersive and interactive AR experiences that complement the action on the field," said Josh Beatty, founder and CEO, ARound. "And with products like Apple and Google AR Glasses already in development we're excited to open up the living room to blended TV experiences we know are the future of broadcast entertainment."
Elevating the fan experience, wherever they may be, is the future of sports advertising.
"We are thrilled to team with ARound and SoFi to incorporate AR into gamedays at the Rams House in unprecedented ways," said Marissa Daly, VP & GM of Los Angeles Rams Studios. "This experience is a continuation of the game-changing ways we've partnered with SoFi at SoFi Stadium and across Los Angeles to elevate the fan experience on gamedays and beyond."
There’s no telling what the future has got in store for us with further advancements in AR. With these collaborations and innovations in the field, VR development companies are poised to revolutionize gamedays and a wide range of experiences across various sectors.
