Paris Saint-Germain enjoys one of soccer’s best home match atmospheres, but club executives still had questions. Why? And how could it be even better?
By collaborating with crowd analytics provider CrowdIQ — who, at PSG’s suggestion, added audio inputs to its AI algorithms — the Ligue 1 power developed a methodology for assessing what factors drove lively experiences at Parc des Princes for its men’s and women’s teams. This new Atmosphere Index has helped PSG devise its matchday programming, sponsor activations and more.
“One of the business challenges that’s important for us is to maximize the match day experience for two real factors,” said PSG Chief Innovation & Digital Officer Jerry Newman, a former executive at Meta, Chelsea FC and The FA, the governing body for soccer in England. “The first is that a great experience in the stadium is great from a consumer perspective. And secondly, there’s a few academic papers that say, actually, the fan is the 12th man in many respects within sport, and if you can figure out a way in which you can improve the atmosphere, it could have an impact on the pitch.”
CrowdIQ’s high-resolution cameras, which also power FanCam, feed its computer vision algorithms to estimate not only fan demographics but also behavior, such as when they arrive at their seats and where they are looking. Its attention tracking product takes photos every second to understand if fans are watching the pitch, checking their phones or looking at stadium signage or videoboards.
PSG then exported its CRM and ticketing data. Opta event data was also added to understand the action happening on the field, such as goals, corner kicks or tackles.
Newman summarized the working definition of a good atmosphere as “a combination of attention, noise and time spent in seat.” Among the findings published in the new white paper:
— Fans reported 10% higher satisfaction for UEFA Champions League matches than for domestic Ligue 1 contests. (PSG won its first Champions League title this past year but has won 11 of the past 13 Ligue 1 trophies, including four straight).
— Attendees arrived about 25 minutes earlier for Champions League matches.
— A key emotional spike in fan interest and energy was noted about 15 minutes before kickoff.
— The Atmosphere Index was typically higher when fans arrived earlier.
“It’s been really helpful, from everything to how we present the match, to how we run promotions to get people into the stadiums, how we improve our F&B, how do we improve traffic into the stadium,” Newman said. “All with the ultimate goal of having the best atmosphere.”
Newman noted that driving revenue is not a primary goal of these efforts to further enhance crowd atmosphere, but it has an indirect impact. A better atmosphere might attract more sponsors and new fans, he said, and winning more matches is valuable from a brand and commercial perspective.
“The idea here is taking something subjective to objective, which in turn makes the crowd a better place to be, makes the game a better place to be, could increase team performance, but also could increase fan satisfaction, arrival times, which means more revenue for the team,” said Katherine Rowe, VP/Client Strategy & Insights for CrowdIQ, a 2023 honoree as one of SBJ’s Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies.
PSG pioneered the Atmosphere Index with CrowdIQ, but the AI firm is now working with other partners to modify the models to be applicable for different sports, different geographies, different venues. The Spurs are a longtime CrowdIQ user — and strategic partner of PSG since earlier this year — who have been collaborating on an NBA version of the index. The Titans will begin collecting fan data next season to inform a fan-centric design of their new Nissan Stadium.
“It’s going to be completely unique to every single partner and every single sport,” CrowdIQ CRO Rachel Goodger said. “What creates a good atmosphere in the NBA versus with PSG is very different, and what matters to those clubs is very different.”
