Technology

Tech Stack: Shift4, Dortmund, FIBA and more

Featured image credit: Johnhochi/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size

Payment technology company Shift4 has been selected by the NHL’s St. Louis Blues as the exclusive payments processor for the team’s home venue, Enterprise Center, and the adjacent Stifel Theatre.

The Blues will implement Shift4’s commerce-enabling hardware and software solutions to continue the enhancement of the arena. Shift4 will process payments for food and beverage concessions at the arena (pictured), including point-of-sale, kiosk and mobile transactions, while it will also power the team’s mobile wallet and loyalty solution.

Shift4 has also been selected by the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers to become the team’s official payment processor.

Shift4 will process Cavaliers ticket transactions through an integration with the team’s ticketing platform, SeatGeek, to provide fans with a secure ticket purchasing experience. Shift4 will also power the Cavaliers’ mobile ordering experience.

German Bundesliga football club Borussia Dortmund has extended its partnership with IT services provider Adesso until 2026.

As an official digitalisation partner of Dortmund, Adesso supports the club in areas such as sales, marketing, software development and IT consulting. The company also serves as the main sponsor of Dortmund’s youth teams.

Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich has revealed that its team line-up announcement at the Allianz Arena will be presented in sign language on video screens around the stadium.

The initiative was rolled out for Sunday’s match against FC Augsburg. The signs, which are displayed by the players themselves, were developed by the deaf fan club Red Deaf, together with Bayern.

Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A football club Corinthians has teamed up with Extratime, a European company specialising in advertising solutions for LED signs in stadiums, for commercial placement and other messages during games at the Neo Química Arena.

The solution will enable brands to display content that interacts in real time with events on the pitch. The solution was successfully tested during Corinthians’ match against Coritiba, with betting company Pixbet debuting the technology by updating its odds as the game took place.

The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) has debuted an integrated LED screen on backstops during the World Cup, which is currently taking place in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.

Schelde Sports and Unilumin Sports, two FIBA global suppliers, have provided the Super SAM 325 PRO LED product, which provides added exposure for FIBA sponsors to showcase their brand to fans during the World Cup.

Toyota Arena in Ontario, California has been fitted with a new ribbon board courtesy of audiovisual systems manufacturer Daktronics.

The new board, which will be fitted in the autumn, will replace Daktronics’ 15-year-old ribbon board. The new ribbon surrounding the arena’s seating fascia will measure approximately 2.5 feet high by 645 feet wide.

Fan experience company KOJO has entered into a partnership with Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL) to develop and deliver a brand platform and marketing campaign for its 2023-24 season.

The deal marks KOJO’s entry into the rights-holder space for brand and marketing services. KOJO will develop a multi-platform brand strategy launching in September. KOJO specialises in sports presentations, brand and marketing campaigns, and in-stadium activations.

LG Electronics USA has signed a multi-year partnership with Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees.

The deal names LG as the official TV partner of the Yankees and includes the LG OLED Sports Lounge located on the field level at Yankee Stadium. The agreement also includes in-stadium signage and fan promotions throughout the season.