ANZ Stadium supercharges Arsenal fan experience with Aggreg8 LIVE via Circul8

More than 11,000 unique pieces of social media content reached an Australia-wide and international audience of tens of millions as a result of a major event partnership between Sydney’s ANZ Stadium and Circul8, the company that powers Aggreg8 Live.

As massive crowds packed into the stadium to witness Arsenal in Sydney for the first time in 40 years, excited fans posted selfies and game action across Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag  #ArsenalinSydney and then watched as their posts amplified on 23m x 10m digital screens at ANZ Stadium via the Aggreg8 Live platform.

Aggreg8 Live is a highly-engaging content marketing tool that enables brands to harness the power of user-generated content, trawling social media to pull posts tagged with specific hashtags into a customisable, aesthetically rich grid display.

Says Alana Stocks, managing director, Circul8: “It gives brands the opportunity to join the conversation with their fans during an event and amplify that engagement through big screens or on an online social hub… the creative ideas are endless.

“Fans are effectively becoming the voice of brands, often telling a more meaningful story than the brand themselves because it is raw and authentic content.

“Our work with ANZ Stadium is a great example of how to get an audience involved to generate hype about an event and influence others to also want to get involved.”

A record 11,500 social media posts were collected via Aggreg8 Live and displayed on the big screens in and around the Stadium and on the website. More than 163,000 fans turned out at ANZ Stadium for Arsenal’s back-to-back blockbusters against Sydney FC (Thursday 13 July) and Western Sydney Wanderers (Saturday 15 July).

The games were televised live, free and in HD on SBS Viceland, with a simulcast throughout Australia via The World Game website, The World Game app, and on SBS on Demand.

Arsenal Media Group also streamed the game live to football supporters internationally via Arsenal TV, with supporting broadcasters taking the games into Asia, Europe and the Americas.

Says Craig McMaster, chief marketing and information officer, ANZ Stadium: “Our partnership with Circul8 began over 12 months ago when tickets went on-sale, with a goal to deliver a highly-engaging fan experience for Arsenal FC fans both in Australia and around the world.

“User-generated content across the Arsenal in Sydney microsite and the culmination of the Aggreg8 Live activation at ANZ Stadium was a fantastic success, and this was recognised by our partners from Arsenal FC as a key component of the overall fan experience of the tour.”

Says Stocks on the potential of marketing tools such as Aggreg8 Live: “Brands engaging with fans on social media and amplifying their content through marketing tools like Aggreg8 Live are gaining a real competitive edge over those who aren’t and enjoying great returns on a small investment.

“Getting fans to create content for you and share it on their social channels is a big ask and the brands that can do this successfully are reaping the benefits.”

“Interestingly, this marketing tool is also impacting conversations offline as friends who catch up often talk about what they’ve seen on each others’ social media channels, cutting out the small talk and enjoying deeper conversations about topics that actually interest them.”