Daktronics continues its partnership with the Kraft Group, New England Patriots and New England Revolution, with 14 new LED displays added to the venue in 2023, including the largest outdoor videoboard in a sports venue in the country. The installation took place over the course of this spring and summer at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
The project adds 14 displays totaling more than 29,500 square feet, bringing a total of 47 Daktronics LED displays and a combined 48,500 square feet of digital canvas to Gillette Stadium to engage and entertain their audiences.
“Daktronics has been providing our LED displays and have been a tremendous partner since we opened Gillette Stadium in 2002,” said Gillette Stadium Chief Operating Officer Jim Nolan. “Their products provide the highest resolution in the industry and the brilliant colors bring our fans closer to the action. This year’s installations, especially the addition of the nation’s largest outdoor videoboard at a sports venue, will greatly enhance the day of game experience for our fans.”
North End Zone Displays
Located in the north end zone, the new curved-radius video display measures 60 feet high by 370 feet wide, totaling 22,200 square feet. Its convex curvature mimics the stadium’s architecture.
Much like the south end zone display, this new installation is capable of variable content zoning allowing it to show one large image or multiple zones of video and content to keep fans immersed in the action at Gillette Stadium. Any combination of live video, instant replays, up-to-the-minute statistics, game information, graphics, animations and sponsorship messages can be displayed. Both end zone displays at Gillette Stadium will now rank in the top 10 among the largest video boards in professional football.
Just below the main video board in the north end zone is an additional ribbon board measuring 10 feet high by 214 feet wide. The end zone also features a field level outdoor display measuring 3.5 feet high by 82 feet wide on the recently announced Bud Light Celebration Beer Hall and a display in front of the newly renovated “Row of Honor” measuring 5 feet high by 30 feet wide for additional messaging opportunities to highlight the names of the men and women who have served and will be honored at every ticketed event at the stadium. The main video board, as well as the ribbon and field-level displays, all feature 10-millimeter pixel spacing.
“Gillette Stadium continues its strong commitment to the overall fan experience by continually improving technology at its facility, including new LED displays installed over the past few seasons and a massive end zone video display that was installed this year,” said Daktronics President and CEO Reece Kurtenbach. “Their team is fantastic to work with and we’re proud to continue our longstanding partnership with the Kraft Group.”
Additional Displays
As fans enter from the north, they will be welcomed to the stadium through the TicketMaster gate featuring a canopy that measures 3.5 feet high by 163 feet wide and features a tight 5.9-millimeter pixel spacing. Two indoor displays, measuring 18 feet high by 64 feet wide, and an elevator display, measuring 9 feet high by 16 feet wide, will be installed in the G-P Atrium to capture fans attention when inside the premium area. These three displays feature 2.5-millimeter pixel spacings to deliver crisp, clear imagery as they help immerse fans in the live event experience.
The “Gillette Stadium” channel lettering above the north end zone displays will also be brought to light, in conjunction with DCL (Design Communications, Ltd.), with full-color LED modules, which can change colors and content. These channel letters measure 14 feet high by 108 feet wide and feature 10-millimeter pixel spacing. Also working with DCL, five double-sided pylon displays are being added in the Enel Plaza. Each display features 3.9-millimeter pixel spacing and measures 6.5 feet high by 5 feet wide to bring additional excitement to the plaza for all stadium events.
Bringing the installation together is Daktronics Show Control system, which was upgraded at Gillette Stadium in 2022. This industry-leading control system provides a combination of display control software, world-class video processing, data integration and playback hardware that forms a powerful yet user-friendly production solution.
