Fans are gearing up for the big game between the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers. However, there is a great deal of technology behind the scenes at Super Bowl 50 to keep the fans engaged and safe.

Super Bowl 50 will be taking place in the heart of Silicon Valley this Sunday at state-of-the-art Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, so it is no coincidence that this NFL venue is the most advanced of its kind in the country. Opening in 2014, the stadium’s location brought together some of the best technology companies in the industry to create the next-generation stadium.

Driving the fan experience through an app

The technology in place enhances the fan experience from before you drive onto the stadium lot. The Levi’s Stadium app (available on Android and iOS) offers mobile tickets, information on public transit, parking passes and a map to navigate around the grounds. Once inside, you can use the app to express order food and beverages while watching high-definition instant replays from your phone. The app also has an “Around Me” feature that helps you find the shortest lines for bathrooms and concessions.

The NFL also offers a Super Bowl Stadium App (available on Android and iOS) that includes access to pre-game activities, fan content and most of the same features the Levi’s app provides.

Technology that never lets you miss a minute

If you do have to leave your seat, you won’t have to miss a minute of the game thanks to the 2,000 Sony TVs located around the stadium. The venue also boasts two 48-foot by 200-foot high-definition video boards above both end zones.

Levi’s Stadium offers five times more capacity than the average stadium, with Wi-Fi connections under every 100 seats. Additionally, there are approximately 1,300 Wi-Fi access points within the facility connecting to about 40 GBs of Internet bandwidth. Shoring up all this wireless traffic, four of the largest wireless carriers are helping to upgrade capacity that would double last year’s Super Bowl activity.

“When a huge event such as the Super Bowl occurs, efforts around scaling IT are often as impressive as high-profile physical infrastructure projects,” according to Paul Nicholson, director of product marketing at A10 Networks. “A crucial component is scaling network infrastructure to accommodate increased levels of traffic and handle added load on critical web assets. Since this year’s Super Bowl streams for free, IT planning extends well beyond the NFL. It means an additional investment in network availability, security, and optimization solutions, which assure that networks streaming the most important football game of the year will smoothly handle the inevitable upticks in traffic, such as during the exciting opening kickoff.”

Powering the big game

Levi’s Stadium is the first NFL stadium to open with LEED Gold certification. The stadium touts net zero to the power grid due to the power it stores over the year through its green roof that sits atop the suite tower with three solar bridges and connection to the main parking area with hundreds of solar panels. Using an eco-friendly approach to powering the game will be a first in the 50 years of Super Bowl history.

Security

The Super Bowl is always a high-level security event regardless of the city, but since Levi’s Stadium is housed in an area where a high-tech surveillance infrastructure exists, law enforcement will be working with new technology, such as data collection programs, that provides insight to activities around the area by integrating video feeds with agency cell phone and radio communications.

Attendees will also be monitored by federal, state and local law enforcement with everything from license plate readers to camera recognition technology. And definitely count on texts and social media posts being monitored.

Big Data and the sports fan

Super Bowl 50 may highlight some of the best and latest technology, but the trend to enhance the fan experience is not limited to this event. For those fans who make it to the stadium to watch a sporting event, the sports franchises are using Big Data to improve your experience.

Jonathan Martinez, director of business development for the Oakland Raiders, spoke with theCUBE, from the SiliconANGLE Media team, in November about how the team is delivering new experiences to the fan by using Big Data gathered through its loyalty program. He said analysis begins from the time of the ticket purchase throughout the whole process of visiting the stadium. He said this allows the stadium to increase its operations.

Bill Schlough, chief information officer for the San Francisco Giants told theCUBE, “We leverage stats and Big Data to make big decisions.” He also said that data gives insight into who is coming to the ballpark and how to engage them.

Can’t afford the $6,000 ticket?

If you can’t make it to the stadium, you can enjoy the game wherever you are. CBS will be using new and improved cameras and technology to make the at-home experience even more exciting. Read more about other viewing options at your disposal, including live streaming the game from CBSSports.com using the browser on your computer or via the iOS, Android or Windows app on a tablet, or via apps on the Xbox One, Apple TV, Chromecast or Roku.

If you are eligible, you can also watch the game via the official NFL Mobile app.

Photo credit: The Stadium of Light Sunderland via photopin (license)