ZSC Lions: Wi-Fi Solution for Major Events

Six players per team, 60 minutes, the team with the highest number of goals wins. Of course, this brief description in no way captures the special atmosphere of an ice hockey match. "I am really proud to say that a game is much more than “just” a hockey match – it’s a lasting experience," explains Romano Caviezel.

As Chief Transformation Officer (CTO) of ZSC Lions AG, Caviezel is responsible for the technical design of Swiss Life Arena, the most modern sports and event location in Switzerland. “Our ambition is to create unforgettable moments for our spectators” says Caviezel.

The Task

These unforgettable moments take place primarily on the ice - but not exclusively. In order for the 12,000 visitors to the Swiss Life Arena to experience a real sporting spectacle, they are accompanied digitally from start to finish. From buying tickets to ordering snacks in the arena. A high-performance Wi-Fi solution and network infrastructure are essential to ensure this best-in-class user experience while enabling work to be carried out smoothly in the back office.

This solution was developed and implemented by Belsoft Infortix AG¹ in close cooperation with Absolut Distribution AG. “For us, this order was almost a home game,” explains Absolut CEO Patrik Eigenheer. “As the leading Swiss Huawei distributor, we are able to react flexibly to problems even for the most demanding Wi-Fi and network projects of our partners and procure the required high-quality material.”

The Solution

This know-how was used effectively for the Swiss Life Arena. Belsoft Infortix designed the cornerstones and requirements of the network infrastructure and finalised the engineering in close cooperation with Huawei. Absolut Distribution took care of all logistics and the timely procurement of the required ICT material. Among other things, 120 network switches and 350 wireless access points were installed across the entire arena. The cornerstones of the so-called Technet are four powerful and highly redundant chassis switches. The entire network is monitored and orchestrated via the Huawei iMaster NCE CloudCampus. An SDN fabric was also set up across the entire network.

The access points were integrated discreetly into the existing infrastructure and, in some cases, the colour was even adapted to meet the high architectural aesthetic requirements of the building owners. Powerful antennas on the ceiling construction ensure uniform and stable Wi-Fi coverage throughout the arena. For an excellent match experience, the large display cube in the arena centre has been equipped with 32 high-quality monitors that are part of the network design and thus enable an “up-close” live experience. “The project benefited in particular from the fact that we, as the largest Huawei distributor in Switzerland, have a well-established team in Switzerland and China and can therefore offer first-class delivery times,” says Eigenheer. Romano Caviezel also emphasises how happy they were on the part of the arena operators with the excellent support of Absolut as a distribution partner, as well as Belsoft Infortix as an engineering and integration partner.

The Benefits

Since ZSC Lions AG, as a customer company of Belsoft Infortix, had also formulated long-term wishes, visions and needs for the project, the existing Wi-Fi solution was already designed for future use cases. These include, for example, optimised visitor flow management or sending real-time game statistics to the viewers’ smartphones. The digital “player tracking system” also makes exciting information such as the speed of individual players and their distance covered on the ice accessible to visitors. These statistics are not only suitable for the spectator discussions, but also enable important conclusions to be drawn for the athletes’ training.

“We are looking forward to being able to test the system with the best hockey cracks in Switzerland,” explains Simon Häni, CTO of Belsoft Infortix. The solution should also be useful and interesting for other sports in the future. There is significant potential for further digitalization in the Swiss Life Arena and the necessary foundation has already been laid thanks to the agile solution. “With Absolut Distribution and Belsoft Infortix, we have partners at our side who can turn our visions into functional technical solutions,” says Caviezel. We are therefore already looking forward to the joint digital powerplay.

QUICK FACTS:

Project data

• Swiss Life Arena

• Project year 2021

• Huawei’s new Wi-Fi and network infrastructure

Results

• Modern Wi-Fi network throughout the Swiss Life Arena

• Central monitoring of the entire network via Huawei iMaster NCE CloudCampus

• Real-time game statistics on viewers’ smartphones

¹Belsoft Infortix AG has been operating under the name CANCOM Switzerland AG since October 2023. The text of this success story has been adapted and left in the original version.