EE UK Test Live 5G Broadcast from Wembley Stadium with BT Sport

Mobile operator EE has moved to defuse some of Three UK’s recent promotional efforts by announcing their own demo of the new 5G wireless broadband technology, which in this case showcased BT Sport’s first live trial of a remote production broadcast over their new network at Wembley Stadium in London.

The two-way broadcast demo made use of the new 3.4GHz radio spectrum band, as well as network slicing technology and was also supported by a 10Gbps capable fibre optic link for backhaul capacity. The broadcast itself was sent via 5G from Wembley Stadium to London’s ExCeL Exhibition Centre and was hosted by BT Sport presenters Matt Smith and Abi Stephens.

Apparently the final of the FA-recognised EE Wembley Cup 2018 will be the “world’s first live sporting event to be broadcast over 5G using remote production.” The event, featuring some of YouTube’s biggest footballers alongside international legends, will be broadcast over EE’s 5G network live from Wembley Stadium on the channel of YouTube star Spencer Owen (Hashtag United) at 2pm on Sunday 25th November 2018.

Jamie Hindhaugh, COO of BT Sport, said:

“BT Sport has a rich history of the latest broadcast innovations, whether it’s ultra-high-definition with Dolby Atmos or 360Virtual Reality. 5G will next season enable BT Sport to deploy the most advanced remote production of any broadcaster. It will allow us to cover more live matches from more leagues and competitions, and to bring fans highlights action closer to the final whistle than has ever been done before in the UK.”

Last week EE named the first 16 cities that will benefit from their commercial deployment of 5G technology (here), which is due to start later in 2019.