Football fans all over the world are getting ready for the latest Tom Brady vs Peyton Manning showdown that leads to a spot in Super Bowl 50. But behind the scenes one team is deploying many new technological resources at its disposal to bring fans closer to the action.
Since acquiring Manning, the Denver Broncos have routinely been rated as one of the most popular teams in the NFL. With Mile High Stadium having a capacity of 76,000, only a small percentage of the team’s fanbase will be able to witness the game today in person compared to the millions of Broncos fans worldwide.
So the team has taken a few steps to try to engage with its worldwide fan base the best it can.
The Broncos last week rolled out virtual reality video on an app designed for the fans and today the team will share live, behind the scenes footage of players getting ready for the game.
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Fans will get to experience what it is like to high-five Peyton Manning starting at 11:35AM local time when three fans wearing Google Glass will interact with players during warmups.
The team has also worked with CrowdOptic, which is a software company designed for wearable technology that will take fans to areas of the stadium that the CBS television cameras won’t be going and let fans see players prepare for one of the biggest games of their lives in ways that aren’t normally possible.
“The goal is to really provide coverage for Broncos fans everywhere, for the 97 percent of fans who can’t be at the game of the decade and experience the pre-game activities,” said Jim Kovach, CrowdOptic’s senior vice president of business development told the Denver Post.
Today is going to be a good day. #BeatThePatriots https://t.co/TYi05Ro95j
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) January 24, 2016
The footage also will be streamed for the first-time on CrowdOptic’s YouTube channel.
“We’ll be on the field and essentially help Broncos fans around the world feel like they’re a part of it even if they can’t get to the game,” Kovach said. “We’ll be at the warm-ups, the locker room and other kinds of environments where you can’t even get in handheld cameras.”
The Broncos also in recent weeks have debuted a dedicated, private social network for the team, that can be accessed online or through the new app.
The app will include content from the fans as well as get the Broncos important data about who is accessing and engaging with their offerings.
It will also include virtual-reality mini movies that will be shot with cameras that can capture 360-degree viewings from Mile High Stadium and can also put fans on the field and see what the player see.
Fans can access this content through Google Cardboard, which presently is much cheaper than the headsets that are available for other virtual reality offerings,
Winning teams have always been the best way to get large groups of fans engaged with the team and while the Broncos have had a long history of winning, it is never known when their next chance to play for a trip to the Super Bowl will be. In recent weeks, the team has certainly had a number of outreach ventures to take advantage of their elevated platform and capitalize on potential new fans to engage for years to come. In the volatile world of the NFL, this heavy outreach should pay dividends for future Broncos teams that might not be playing for a chance at the Super Bowl.