Liverpool FC have unveiled a major investment in Wi-Fi infrastructure at Anfield which will deliver a better experience for those attending matches and a wealth of data and information to guide the club on how to provide a better service in and around the stands.
The Liverpool experience will be considered as one of the areas under discussion at this month’s Sport for Business Members Round Table on ‘The Fan Experience’.
The club has selected a Xirrus Wi-Fi network and have already begun installation at the 12,000 seat Centenary Stand and the adjoining corporate facilities.
Fans will be able to access the Wi-Fi network for the first time at the Premier League club’s next home game, against West Ham on Sunday 7th April.
The new network will also provide unprecedented feedback and insight into fan behaviour for the club.
“Running our own data network means we can provide our fans with a dedicated, robust and high quality experience,” said Andrew Robinson, Head of Digital Media and Technology at Liverpool.
“The added reliability and performance of high capacity Wi-Fi over 3G connections will encourage our fans to use social networks like Twitter and Facebook to share their experiences with fans unable to make it to the game.”
“A massive driver for this new network is that we can gain more insight into our fans than ever before. Sign-in will be via a one-time registration process using an email address and fans will be encouraged to tell us their likes and dislikes.”
“The technology will allow us to find out what devices fans like to connect with the Club on so we can invest in digital platforms accordingly. We will also find out more about how fans use the stadium and its facilities so we can adapt these to better serve them.”
“The experience that we’ve created from day one is something we think fans will get very excited about. We’ll be providing in-match stats, food and drink offers, access to online retail, in-play betting in partnership with Paddy Power and also the ability to engage with a global audience outside of the stadium through social media platforms.”
In Ireland Eircom, O2, Vodafone and Three are all heavily involved in sporting partnerships that can deliver huge benefit to consumers through the match day and supporter experience; and to sports bodies through exactly the kind of knowledge about behaviour that Robinson outlines will be the case at Liverpool.
Social media experiments involving fan messages have taken place at Croke Park and the Aviva Stadium and are a pointer towards what fans not not only enjoy but expect.
See how match day experiences featured as part of our Members’ Round Table on Social Media at Google HQ.


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