Match made virtually

This past week I came across an article on the Aarhus football website, www.agf.dk about a fan-less yet virtual football game using video conferencing. According to the article, “The new digital initiative, which requires no less than 23 men to execute during the match, is being run in collaboration with the international digital video platform, Zoom.   

It will be a kind of virtual stadium to which you pick up a free ticket - and as the match begins, you gather with those who have a ticket to the same virtual grandstand section. And there are 22 different sections to choose from - just like a regular football stadium.  So, there will be room for both home fans, neutral spectators and away fans - but only virtual.   

The digital initiative will see several screens to be set up in the middle of the home-stadium of AGF, Ceres Park, - here the fans watching from their virtual grandstand section will be shown. So also, the players of the match will be able to see and feel the support from the living rooms directly at the stadium - at a healthy distance, but still close at heart and to the football.     

 It will be the first tournament match in a long time. We are celebrating that with a historic digital initiative, and we are proud to be the first club in the world to use it. Now it seems that we have to do without spectators for a while, so maybe we can inspire a similar initiative at other clubs that can also benefit from it in the coming time, says Jacob Nielsen, CEO of AGF.” 

Imagine doing this in the PBA, PSL, UAAP, NCAA and MPBL. An event like this is a sports marketer’s dream. This practically circumvents the roadblocks and obstacles caused by the outbreak. This is the closest thing to a live event that we, as fans, are going to get. This will be as good as it gets.