BERGEN, Norway—Vizrt has announced that it collaborated with Sky Sports Germany to broadcast its first vertical soccer match multi-screened on Tik Tok.
The collaboration allowed fans who tuned into the broadcaster’s social media platform on Saturday to watch the highly anticipated Super Cup match, with a multi-split screen format that delivered a unique fan experience, the companies said.
“Sport viewer trends are rapidly changing,” explained Alessandro Reitano, senior vice president sports production at Sky Sports. “Vertical football [soccer] matches have been broadcasted previously, however screening on TikTok whilst offering a multi-screen viewing experience is a first. We’ve seen a growing demand for snappier content via digital platforms, and with Vizrt Vectar, we can deliver a one-of-a-kind experience that combines multiple aspects of the game within a short 15-minute segment.”
Described as a ‘Watch Party’, viewers were able to watch multiple sources and graphics simultaneously including exclusive camera cuts, performance history, and match analytics, the companies said.
Sky Sports Germany is using Vizrt’s Viz Vectar Plus for the live 9:16 production, in addition to using Viz Engine 5, and its classic render pipeline, for its core broadcast studio production to drive the LED walls and AR graphics.
Sky Sports Germany has also brought in Viz Arena for in-stadium AR graphics and Viz Libero for advanced sports analysis.
The companies also noted that recent research by Vizrt has shown a growing trend amongst Gen Z for short-form content and that Vizrt’s solutions allowed Sky Sports Germany to capitalize on this trend by offering 15-minute live segments of the game aired prior to, during, and post the match.
This new viewing experience also responds to a growing trend in sports by younger generations who are opting out of traditional broadcast formats and prefer to watch sports via their mobile phones while on the go.
Two-thirds (68%) of Gen Z and almost half (47%) of millennials frequently watch sports on social media and over 70% find vertical viewing more personal and immersive than horizontal, according to Vizrt.
