Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Thursday, January 15, 2026
Largest LED display in US college football to be unveiled
AV Magazine: The largest main video display in US college football is to be unveiled at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.
The 1,600 sq metres LED display is one of 16 from vendor Daktronics that will have a combined surface area of 2,500 sq metres.
It is so funny to me that this scoreboard being installed is considered to be a news-worthy event. I think it is interesting how we care about our sporting venues, and making them the best they can possibly be. From my perspective this is just another really heavy video wall, but from the perspective of the people who are going to be cheering in their stadium, it is a source of pride and their window into the game. I do think that it is a great development that large media surfaces in sports venues and concert venues can give us Imag opportunities, and allow a much larger crowd of people to see the detail that would normally only be visible from the first row of seats, if even there. On the other hand though, I feel like it is very easy to fall into the habit of just watching the game through the LED wall, in which case you might as well watch the game from your couch at home.
I am always amazed at how many different industries take advantage of the same technologies. LED displays are used heavily throughout the entertainment industry both in live and interactive art forms. While fields such as sports use the exact same technology albeit normally bigger and newer. They are able to utilize LED displays to connect their fans to create a more entertaining and engaging experience. I also found it interesting that many of the largest schools for college football are not the ones with the largest LED Displays. The University of Illinois is ranked around 34th in the country after their 2025 season but will have the largest video display in all of college football. Michigan, ranked number one in college football, only has the 5th largest video display. You might believe that the best would also have the biggest but due to all different funding and institutional requirements it doesn't line up. Overall College football's usage of huge LED displays both mirrors the entertainment industry and doesn't have much relation to how influential the school is in football.
I don’t really care about football at all, but I still found this article kind of wild. The fact that a giant scoreboard can become news really shows how seriously college football fans take their stadiums and traditions. I’m way more used to LED walls being used in concerts, theater, or theme parks, so seeing the same technology pushed to this massive scale for sports feels a little surreal to me. What stood out most was just how huge this thing actually is. Thirty million pixels for people to stare at replays and graphics is honestly impressive, even if I personally wouldn’t go anywhere near a football game. It’s also kind of cool to see how much effort and creativity goes into making the game-day experience feel exciting for fans. Even though football isn’t my thing, innovations like this make it easier to understand why people get so invested in the atmosphere.
3 comments:
It is so funny to me that this scoreboard being installed is considered to be a news-worthy event. I think it is interesting how we care about our sporting venues, and making them the best they can possibly be. From my perspective this is just another really heavy video wall, but from the perspective of the people who are going to be cheering in their stadium, it is a source of pride and their window into the game. I do think that it is a great development that large media surfaces in sports venues and concert venues can give us Imag opportunities, and allow a much larger crowd of people to see the detail that would normally only be visible from the first row of seats, if even there. On the other hand though, I feel like it is very easy to fall into the habit of just watching the game through the LED wall, in which case you might as well watch the game from your couch at home.
I am always amazed at how many different industries take advantage of the same technologies. LED displays are used heavily throughout the entertainment industry both in live and interactive art forms. While fields such as sports use the exact same technology albeit normally bigger and newer. They are able to utilize LED displays to connect their fans to create a more entertaining and engaging experience. I also found it interesting that many of the largest schools for college football are not the ones with the largest LED Displays. The University of Illinois is ranked around 34th in the country after their 2025 season but will have the largest video display in all of college football. Michigan, ranked number one in college football, only has the 5th largest video display. You might believe that the best would also have the biggest but due to all different funding and institutional requirements it doesn't line up. Overall College football's usage of huge LED displays both mirrors the entertainment industry and doesn't have much relation to how influential the school is in football.
I don’t really care about football at all, but I still found this article kind of wild. The fact that a giant scoreboard can become news really shows how seriously college football fans take their stadiums and traditions. I’m way more used to LED walls being used in concerts, theater, or theme parks, so seeing the same technology pushed to this massive scale for sports feels a little surreal to me. What stood out most was just how huge this thing actually is. Thirty million pixels for people to stare at replays and graphics is honestly impressive, even if I personally wouldn’t go anywhere near a football game. It’s also kind of cool to see how much effort and creativity goes into making the game-day experience feel exciting for fans. Even though football isn’t my thing, innovations like this make it easier to understand why people get so invested in the atmosphere.
Post a Comment