France TV transformed its live broadcast of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) vs. AS Monaco in the French Football Cup final, using Pixotope to generate 3D recreations of Paris and Monaco cityscapes. This was all made possible by the seamless integration between Pixotope® and XD Motion’s camera technology.
XD Motion’s Fly 3D cable cam recorded live footage of the Stade de France at halftime, with Pixotope graphics covering the stadium’s pitch with real-time augmented reality regenerations of iconic city landmarks.
The Stade de France is the country’s national stadium and stands as one of the biggest venues in Europe. However, in light of the crowd being absent due to continuing social distancing restrictions, producers at France TV had ambitious plans to cover the entire pitch with AR graphics. World-renowned landmarks such as the Port de Fontvieille in Monaco and the Eiffel Tower in Paris were generated in real-time beneath giant logos of each respective club – covering both the grass and disguising the players during halftime.
One of Pixotope key features is its standalone, high-performance Tracking Server, connecting Pixotope® with all of the major real-time camera and object tracking systems. This isn’t just passing a signal, allowing users to adjust and transform signals in a robust way, working in alignment with graphics and video.
For this project, this real-time application of AR graphics was made possible by direct integration between Pixotope and XD Motion’s cameras. Attached with multiple fiber ropes and suspended in mid-air, the Fly 3D cable cam tracked the eighty thousand-seat stadium in three dimensions. The digital recreations of Paris and Monaco, created by Post Logic, were then inputted directly into the frame, live on air to millions of viewers.
Benoit Dentan, CEO at XD Motion said, “It was incredible to see the new integration between Pixotope and XD motion work so effectively during one of the biggest broadcast events in French football. All of the graphics were broadcast live on-air, demonstrating the seamless implementation of real-time augmented reality in live sporting events using Pixotope. The combination of XD Motion’s live tracking and AR transforms the viewers’ experience”.
This latest use of Augmented Reality technology is a further testament to Pixotope rapid expansion across broadcast sports, providing television studios with new creative ways to produce immersive live sporting coverage and events.
Find out more about using Pixotope for live sporting events and broadcasts by getting in touch with our team.