The New York Mets have been on a three-year journey to transform their home, Citi Field, into the world’s most technologically advanced ballpark. Recognizing that modern fans have high entertainment needs and expectations, the aim was to create an engaging and immersive stadium that would deliver a one-of-a-kind fan experience. Faced with overhauling outdated and unfit display technology without disrupting team activity, the Mets had to carry out this transformation over a multi-year, phased approach. To achieve this large-scale project, the Mets required an experienced and flexible technology partner that could support them from beginning to end.
The Challenge
The Solution
Samsung’s partnership with the NY Mets began in 2021. Samsung’s history of innovation, excellence, and transforming sports venues into advanced marvels aligned perfectly with the Mets’ vision of creating a state-of-the-art fan experience. The extensive three-year digital transformation included 1,300 high-definition LED displays totaling 29,800 square feet and 40 million pixels. Among these were ribbon boards, concession displays and screens in suites. The standout addition was the installation of the largest scoreboard in professional baseball. The first-of-its-kind, dual-sided centerfield scoreboard enhanced the visual experience for fans throughout the stadium like no other ballpark.
"We really wanted to enhance the show, do things that were never done before."
– Oscar Fernandez, Senior Vice President of Technology at the NY Mets
The Results
The NY Mets and Samsung have set a new standard for what fans can expect in terms of in-stadium technology. The upgraded displays create an immersive and memorable experience for every fan, making every visit to Citi Field special. The “wow” factor created during key game moments, such as strikeouts or home runs, draws fans’ attention away from their phones and back to the live action. These moments are further amplified by the ribbon boards that run along the seating areas, displaying real-time statistics, player data, and other engaging content. The upgrades also open up increased revenue potential by enabling more flexible and attractive advertising options on the dynamic displays, bolstering the team’s ROI.
About The Mets
Citi Field is a premier open-air ballpark located in Queens, New York City. As the home of Major League Baseball’s New York Mets, it boasts a seating capacity of more than 41,000, with additional standing room for sell-out events. The stadium seamlessly blends the Mets’ National League heritage with modern design, offering unparalleled amenities for fans and visitors. In addition to Mets games, Citi Field hosts a variety of high-profile events, including New York City FC soccer matches, international soccer games, and major musical concerts. The venue features a variety of luxury suites and premium clubs along with an array of dining options, making it a top-tier destination for sports and entertainment in the New York metropolitan area.
The Challenge
Reinventing the stadium experience
When Major League Baseball’s NY Mets decided to upgrade the outdated technology at its home, Citi Field, it would be on a scale befitting of the Big Apple.
At the iconic ballpark, the Mets have been on a three-year technology transformation journey. Through a multi-phased approach, the team wanted to create the league’s most technologically advanced venue, culminating in the installation of the biggest screen in baseball.
The driving force behind the upgrade project was twofold: replace end-of-life technology and supersize the fan experience.
“We really wanted to enhance the show, do things that were never done before,” said Oscar Fernandez, senior vice president of technology at the NY Mets. “Added to that, we had real-world problems with outdated technology, so we married those two needs. It needed to feel like a brand-new experience but without the need to build a new stadium.”
The Mets’ mission to replace old, unfit technology with larger, high-definition, best-in-class LED displays would need to future-proof and align the stadium experience with the high-caliber performance the team aimed to deliver on the field.
Further, being in New York, the Mets are in one of the world’s most competitive entertainment markets. Surrounded by many sports teams, famous attractions, and Broadway, to name a few, they recognized that to remain a leading must-visit venue, they must satisfy modern attendees’ diverse entertainment needs and expectations.
The Mets looked to leverage the latest technology to create a one-of-a-kind gameday that would attract audiences and captivate crowds. With the digital display transformation, the Mets would also seek an ROI by changing from static signs throughout the stadium to digital domination, helping drive revenue. And when it’s not a thrilling gameday, the technology can support a variety of events for different audiences, from concerts and fundraisers to training and sports tournaments.
However, one of the biggest challenges was upgrading legacy systems to state-of-the-art technology without constructing a new stadium. This included installing 4K cameras and infrastructure to handle new formats, ensuring both current and future needs were met.
To achieve this, the NY Mets sought a technology partner that would be able to provide an end-to-end solution from design, manufacturing and installation of industry-leading displays.
“We wanted a partner not just from a hardware perspective but who could also offer the full gamut of design and build and be our partner holistically, both horizontally in all different areas, whether it was for TVs, LFDs or LEDs,” explained Fernandez.
The Solution
Unmatched innovation with groundbreaking tech
Navigating a multi-year phased upgrade project can involve many shifts and changes, so the Mets required an experienced partner who would be flexible, supportive and willing to go the extra inning.
“Part of the decision making was that greater vision of someone who can go on this journey with us for three years or longer into the future for this digital transformation project,” revealed Fernandez.
The NY Mets selected Samsung in 2021 as its technology partner due to its track record of transforming large-scale stadiums into cutting-edge experiences through a holistic and innovative approach that aligned with the organization’s values.
“We wanted everything to be best-in-class,” stated Brendan McKeon, executive director of in-game operations at the NY Mets. “This has been the overriding message throughout the organization.”
With the challenge accepted, Samsung and the Mets would deliver something never seen before in professional baseball.
The first hurdle was having to update around legacy architecture. To ensure minimal disruption to the NY Mets operations, the technology overhaul would have to be executed in phases over the course of three years. This strategic approach offered the team and Samsung a meticulous process at each stage that would focus on the most pressing needs at that time.
“Primary and foremost we wanted to overhaul our control room as it was end of life. We were faced with a situation where it would not be working properly the next season, so that was the initial investment,” revealed Fernandez.
In this first phase, Samsung worked with the Mets to deliver its goal of having the first 4K control room in Major League Baseball. The team also enhanced its cameras to 4K and upgraded its infrastructure to handle the new format.
“In doing that upgrade we could serve both our needs of today and the needs of tomorrow,” added Fernandez.
In the phases that followed, end-of-life was still a priority, but fan experience became the number one objective.
Samsung and the Mets collaborated and pushed the boundaries of possibility to design and deploy a stadium-wide system that included over 1,300 LCD displays and over 29,800 square feet of new LED displays, totaling 40 million pixels.
The installation saw key areas equipped with Samsung displays, including ribbon boards, stretched multiple tiers around the bowl, suite displays, and direct view LED screens in public spaces, such as concourses, to keep the fan experience immersive at every touchpoint.
But the crown jewel at Citi Field comes in the form of its centerfield main scoreboard — a first-of-its-kind, double-sided LED display that’s three times larger than its previous scoreboard and the largest to be found in any professional ballpark. The innovative scoreboard was central to the vision from the beginning, but it was reimagined and refined throughout the project. It was key that the scoreboard work in harmony with the other displays on the field and in the control room to maximize its size and impact.
With a 17,400 square-foot video display on the front and 6,900 square feet on the back, it features over 13 million pixels, along with a high-resolution, 10mm pixel pitch display. The sheer size of the display means everyone from the fans in the stands to teams in the dugouts gets a clear view and immersive experience.
The Results
A state-of-the-art ballpark like no other
Samsung’s state-of-the-art technology upgrades at Citi Field have underscored the Mets’ goal of providing best-in-class fan experiences.
Recognizing that modern audiences have diverse entertainment needs and expectations and that television broadcasts are increasingly competing, the Mets have created a unique and captivating offering at Citi Field.
With its high-definition displays providing maximum visibility and impact, the Mets can show live game action, 4K instant replays, player statistics and dynamic content that engages fans.
“We’ve seen the changes in baseball’s rules to shorten the play, so we needed to take it upon ourselves, too, to engage fans better. A larger scoreboard and more ribbons with more information, more data, more stats give the real estate to deliver that to the fans as well as giving them those big ‘wow’ moments,” explained Fernandez.
The Mets can hype the crowd to levels they’ve never seen before. Using clever synchronization through IPTV technology, the entire network of displays can all come to life in key moments of a game, such as a strikeout or home run. The spatial relationship between all the videoboards and coherent timing can have content “fly” around the bowl to amazing effect.
“This is just one way to engage with fans, bring them off of their phones and keep them interested in what’s happening in the bowl and on the field,” said Fernandez.
Samsung’s technology also enables digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising, turning static displays into dynamic canvases for creative advertisements visible both inside and outside the stadium. This includes the rear of the main scoreboard, which is visible from the highway, further extending the reach of advertisers. The ROI from revolutionary technology has seen the Mets change its approach to how it sells assets on the partnership side.
“We could have a moment where a brand could own a home run. They could own a half-inning. And every display would help to bring that brand to life,” explained Fernandez. “These full takeovers have changed the value of those assets.”
The team can also use the boards as an effective coaching tool. During batting practice, they’ll put a live feed on the right-field scoreboard and a delayed feed on the centerfield scoreboard. The displays will showcase key metrics, such as pitch speed and hip distance. After their session in the cage, players can look up and review their performance.
“It’s really good feedback for them, and it’s really good feedback for the coaches,” said McKeon. “It’s instantaneous and they can make adjustments for that night’s game.”
Additionally, moving on from static displays, digital canvases provide a less noisy and uncluttered look, which is more appealing to fans and advertisers.
“Around the league, we are the envy in terms of how clean everything looks,” boasted McKeon.
Beyond baseball, the advanced displays can further diversify revenue for the Mets as they now offer an enhanced experience to other events it hosts such as New York City Football Club games, concerts, corporate events, graduations, or even the possibility of movie nights played out on the big screen.
Good things come to those who wait, and the three-year visionary partnership between the New York Mets and Samsung has delivered a seamless integration of next-generation display technology that sets a new standard for sports venues.
“I’ve been coming to Mets games my whole life, and there’s now no better show than coming to Citi Field. Even fans of other teams enjoy it and say we put on the best show. It makes a game much more fun to watch,” added Fernandez. “It’s so exciting regardless of what’s happening on the field.”
