The sports industry and its major events were hit hard in 2020 and 2021, with many events postponed or even cancelled. Furthermore, this experience was a disappointment for fans all across the globe. The Chinese Taipei University Sports Federation (CTUSF) used this to their advantage, bringing high speed and quality streams to all spectators worldwide.
CTUSF did this using 5G technology and mobile broadcasts on-site produced by its own media volunteer team Student Sports Union (SSU). The development of this initiative aims to provide more live streams of sports events with high quality and instant availability to make matches more accessible sports fans.
“Because of the coronavirus impact, we once again realise the potential and importance of the development of our online channel called SSUtv,” said Ching-yu Tseng, Assessor of FISU and Secretary-General of CTUSF. “It helps us communicate with the young generation and connect with the world more efficiently,” he explained.
In total, 205 out of 237 games were broadcasted using this technology, with the rebroadcast rate improving to an impressive to 86%. Also because of this, the highest recorded number of fans watching a single match reached over 12,000 streams at once.
Benefiting from this technology the most was the University Basketball Association (UBA) in Chinese Taipei in the Men’s Division 1 tournament that was fully covered for the first time in the 2020-21 season thanks to this technology. Appreciation for this exposure also came from the coaches and players at the event.
“More broadcasted games means more opportunity for our effort to be seen, especially the support from the audience which is the best encouragement to the players,” mentioned one of the team head coaches, also a former basketball player.
Just last year, the Men’s and Women’s Division 1 Finals of UBA were held behind the closed doors at Taipei Arena. This year, thanks to the wider reach from the broadcast, CTUSF welcomed spectators back to the biggest arena and even held a capacity of over 27,000 people to witness March Madness.
A longtime supporter of CTUSF, FISU also streamed these championship games on FISU TV. A big milestone for CTUSF, audiences abroad watched the games and experienced the caliber of sports events in Chinese Taipei.
For many, the global pandemic closed many doors and left many uncertain of the future of sport. CTUSF managed to turn this perspective around, turning a global crisis into opportunity using technology to their advantage and brining university sport to those who love it the most making sport more accessible than ever before.
Photos provided by CTUSF