Executive Summary
Sky Germany and Sky Italia are sports broadcast leaders. They are known for their visually stunning and in-depth live sports coverage, and hold the rights to premium events like the Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, and Serie A. They know viewers expect more than a live game. Fans want insight. They want drama. They want to feel close to the action.
Using Vizrt Sports solutions, Sky turns match information into clear, exciting visuals that keep audiences engaged on any sport, anywhere, anytime.
The Challenge: Turning Data into Visual Drama
Sky faced a familiar problem. They had plenty of stats. But they needed to present them fast and clearly. The goal was to provide analysis that felt like it was part of the live coverage, not separate from it.
Alessandro Reitano, Senior Vice President of Sports Production at Sky Germany, puts it this way:
“I think the three major impacts I’ve seen so far is, obviously, how you’re using data for better storytelling, how you can visualize data for a better understanding of the game… make it more immersive, let’s say more ‘touchable’ and a better impact for our customers.
“Our sports studios are not just for analyses, they are true sports entertainment spaces. We are a bit richer in the way we present information … for us, it’s a show.”
The Big Three focus areas for entertaining fans
1. 3D Analysis – Viz Libero
Viewers love smart breakdowns. They remember dynamic camera moves. They notice visuals that explain a key moment.
With Viz Libero, Sky’s elite analysis team can dissect game moments, recreate plays in photorealistic 3D, and use the Viz Libero’s unique 3D flight tool to show tactics and player movement.
Alexander Kohl, Team Leader for Analysis at Sky Germany, loves creating 3D flights:
“My favorite tool in Viz Libero has definitely always been the 3D flight, as it clearly brings added value to the viewer. An incredibly good element that also breaks the analysis and can switch from a static camera to a moving camera. This tool makes the analysis significantly more exciting and much more dynamic.”
With 3D flights, the team at Sky can easily explain what could have happened, why it mattered, and what to watch for next. The kind of insight that hardcore fans love.
2. Augmented Reality – Viz Arena
Flat screens limit engagement. AR expands it.
Sky uses Viz Arena outdoors and indoors to place real-time graphics onto the field, beside presenters, and onto the studio floor and videowalls. Maximizing any space, real and virtual, into a storytelling canvas.
As Lagattolla notes:
“At Sky Italia, every surface becomes part of the analysis. The floor itself turns into Augmented Reality.”
With Viz Arena, operators can calibrate quickly and deploy anywhere. No expensive and complex tracked cameras required.
“Viz Arena has enriched us greatly by giving us the opportunity to use affordable and efficient AR-graphics on the field, on-site, in the stadium, with fast and simple calibration,” adds Kohl.
Augmented and Virtual Reality make premium sports feel larger than life, helping viewers better see data and move from information to immersion.
3. Reliable Real-time Graphics – Viz Pilot Edge
Data changes constantly. Graphics must keep up because fans expect it.
Viz Pilot Edge templated graphics gives Sky teams the speed and reliability to create, preview, and update graphics directly in their NRCS. It ensures the data on air matches the commentary in the moment, and with readymade templates, graphics are always brand and show aligned.
“The power of Vizrt also lies in the fact that we can always have real-time statistical data on the screen, and therefore our viewers can always have constant updates without having to wait for the rendering times of traditional graphics engines.
And this is fundamental for broadcasts that follow live events, because the information we provide before the match changes during the match and after the match, so there is a need for greater integration with real-time data,” says Andrea Cavaliere, Head of Real-Time Graphics at Sky Italia.
“Live data must be represented on air quickly enough so that it matches what is happening and what the live commentator, is saying. Viz Pilot Edge helps with that,” says Kohl.
This speed and reliability helps the in-studio presenters to focus entirely on their segments, because they have full confidence that the technology will execute flawlessly.
As analyst and presenter Marko Stankovic notes: “Vizrt’s tools have never disappointed me; that makes my job very easy. I can just focus on how I want to present something, instead of thinking, ‘does the tech work?’”
Additionally to guarantee that advanced AR, graphics, dynamic studio lighting, video wall changes, and camera cuts are all executed at the precise moment required by the director, Sky uses Viz Mosart as the central automation layer. Its ability to perfectly coordinate multiple creative systems raises the quality of the visual storytelling.
“The ability to synchronize camera movements with lights, graphics, live openings, and camera cuts allows us to bring our creativity to a level of precision and superiority that was not possible before,” says Fabio Bonnuci, Senior Director of Program Management, Sky Italia.
Key Takeaways for Better Viewer Engagement
Leverage tools like Viz Arena to integrate AR into any space – studio or on location, transforming environments into an interactive virtual stage.
Cavaliere states: “The fact that my designers can directly contact the parent company (Vizrt) … to request new features, new tools, is essential for our growth.
His colleague Lagattolla concurs.
“I am very proud of the way we use Vizrt in our studios. Even externally, this is used as an example by our competitors. We do our job very well. Our Studio Six, a sports studio, is an excellent example of storytelling where Vizrt is used for everything, from the LED walls to the AR graphics, to the virtual ceiling, which is also our invention that I am very proud of. The team is really very good at finding new solutions.
“There is a wonderful exchange between the creative and editorial teams. Collaboration helps us use Vizrt tools to the fullest.”
Conclusion
Sky Germany and Sky Italia demonstrate that the future of sports broadcasting is immersive, data-rich, and visually spectacular. By combining the power of Viz Libero and Viz Arena with the Viz Pilot Edge templated graphics, Sky delivers premium infotainment that engages audiences of any sport. They are not just showing the game; they are using technology to analyze, visualize, and entertain, keeping their audiences delighted and cementing their reputation for premium sports coverage.
