Is The Premier League Scoring An Own Goal When It Comes To Stadium Access? Time To Say Hola To La Liga
The Premier League is undoubtedly the crown jewel of world football. Its competitiveness, financial prowess, talent pool, and edge-of-the-seat entertainment is unmatched by any other league.
Yet, for all its grandeur, the league’s stadium access and fan entrance experience is anything but enjoyable. In an age where technology has revolutionised every facet of our lives, the experience of entering a Premier League stadium feels oddly below par. Long queues and multiple screening processes mean fans often have to wait over an hour before getting to their seats.
This is where La Liga is taking charge and innovating stadium access management using facial biometrics. Some of the major La Liga teams have implemented facial biometric access, where fans can simply walk into the stadium in seconds, without having to queue up and go through long screening processes.
This is something the Premier League could learn from their Spanish competitors. Let’s discuss this innovative new approach in detail.
The Premier League's Current Stadium Access System
For many fans, matchday is an unforgettable experience, a ritual. It's the anticipation of the game, the camaraderie with fellow supporters, and the thrill of seeing their footballing heroes in action. However, in England, this experience often begins on a sour note. The current access methods in the Premier League are predominantly reliant on paper tickets and digital QR codes.
Long queues snake around stadiums as fans wait, sometimes in the biting cold or pouring rain, to have their tickets checked or QR codes scanned. Especially for major stadiums like Old Trafford and Anfield, which hosts more than 60,000 fans every matchday, the wait time can be excruciating. The process is not just time-consuming but fraught with many challenges. Lost tickets, malfunctioning QR code scanners, or simply the delay caused by thousands trying to access their digital codes simultaneously can lead to a management crisis. At the start of this season, Arsenal’s opening league match at the Emirates Stadium was delayed for 30 minutes, as a problem with the turnstiles left thousands of fans unable to get in on time.
Moreover, in a post-pandemic world, the close proximity in queues raises valid health and safety concerns. So, stadium access management is evidently one of the major areas that the Premier League needs to optimise and innovate. The league's quality on the pitch should also be reflected off the pitch, especially at the turnstiles.
La Liga's Pioneering Biometric Approach
Technology has been a game-changer in football. From introducing VAR to leveraging big data for player analytics, the sport has embraced innovation at every turn. One of the most recent groundbreaking advancements has been in enhancing the fan experience, particularly in stadium access.
Last April marked a significant milestone in this journey. Osasuna, a historical club in La Liga, became the first to introduce biometric facial access to its stadium, completely transforming the traditional way fans accessed football arenas.
El Sadar, Osasuna’s stadium, installed eight fast-track entrances, allowing fans to enter just by scanning their facial biometrics. This voluntary system, like express lanes on motorways, offers a more comfortable and secure way of accessing the stadium. The results were staggering: the new method allowed 40 fans to enter per minute, a rate previously unheard of in football stadiums.
Fans who opted for this biometric access, don’t need to carry any physical or digital season tickets. They simply need to approach the facial recognition reader at the turnstiles and enter without any additional screening. The registration for this system is equally straightforward, requiring just a scan of the ID card, the season ticket, and a selfie. Since this implementation at El Sadar, there has been a 5-fold increase in the number of people entering through the facial recognition turnstiles, demonstrating that more fans are opting for this streamlined and convenient verification method, with thousands of them doing it every weekend.
This innovation didn't just enhance the fan experience; it also garnered international attention. Osasuna's forward-thinking approach earned them a nomination for the prestigious StadiumBusiness awards in the Technology category, a testament to their leadership and innovation in stadium management. It’s also inspiring other sports organisations in Spain to implement similar methods. Currently, more than 35 Spanish sports entities offer facial recognition access to their members.
Debunking Biometric Myths & Emphasising Benefits
Biometric technology, despite its advancements, often finds itself shrouded in myths and misconceptions. One of the most prevalent concerns revolves around privacy and data protection. However, as demonstrated by La Liga's implementation, these systems are designed with privacy at their core.
The biometric access system, as adopted by Osasuna, is fully compliant with stringent regulations like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other European standards. This ensures that fans' data is not only securely managed but also protected from potential breaches. The technology's commitment to “privacy by default and design” is a testament to its robustness in safeguarding user information. At the same time, it’s a voluntary system, meaning that fans can still choose to go through the traditional route of stadium entrance, if they don’t prefer biometric verification.
The biometric system provides a more secure method of identification, reducing the risk of fraudulent entries. With facial recognition, the chances of ticket duplication or theft are virtually eliminated. Biometric access ensures a swift, hassle-free entry, enhancing the overall matchday experience for fans.
Biometrics-driven access control systems can also help stadiums to effectively comply with fan stand regulations. Across different football leagues, there are certain laws in place to prevent any violence, racism, xenophobia and acts of intolerance from the fans.
These regulations are significant, as there are increasing cases of racism and violence from the terraces, often guided towards players and teams. Football is an emotional sport, but such acts can disrupt the beauty, harmony, and safety of the game. Implementing biometric systems at stadiums can allow clubs to effectively comply with these safety regulations, and accurately identify and authenticate who is entering the stadium.
The Premier League, with its global stature and influence, has always been at the forefront of football innovation, and it’s high time they also emphasise safety, comfort, and compliance for fans through biometric technology. La Liga's successful implementation serves as a beacon, highlighting the potential benefits and the transformative impact of this technology on stadium management.
In conclusion, it’s time for the Premier League to take a leaf out of La Liga's book. By embracing biometric access, not only can they enhance security but also significantly elevate the fan experience, making matchdays more memorable and seamless. For clubs, stakeholders, and decision-makers within the Premier League, the message is clear: the future of stadium access is here, and it's time to step into it.
Click the article to enlarge it.
