Real Madrid Working on 'Massive Project' with Apple

Real Madrid is currently working on a project in collaboration with Apple, aiming to enable football fans to watch matches taking place at the Santiago Bernabéu within the metaverse, using virtual reality glasses.

Club President Florentino Pérez first hinted at this idea during the 2024 General Assembly, stating: "Fans can watch matches in their homes using virtual reality glasses, and I must say the experience seems better than watching it in the stadium." He added that this would allow them to have a virtual seat and a special Real Madrid subscription in their homes.

Florentino Pérez's idea has evolved significantly in recent months and is now a tangible reality. The club announced its partnership with Apple for this project through GQ magazine, with Pérez telling the publication: "We are working together on a project I have pursued for many years, which is to enable any fan to experience the excitement of the Bernabéu as if they were here, in the stadium itself."

Pérez continued to describe the project, saying: "It will be like opening the stadium doors to the entire world, without limits and with a technological quality that will bring about a qualitative leap in the world of sports." Regarding the economic impact, Pérez noted that it is not the immediate priority.

Pérez emphasized: "What is truly essential is to provide the experience that a billion Real Madrid fans want to live. Steve Jobs was not obsessed with financial results; he was obsessed with creating exceptional products, and when one focuses on excellence, the rest follows automatically."

If Real Madrid can gather 50 million people to watch a single match – a figure not far-fetched for a club with over 200 million fans worldwide – and collect just one euro from each, it would generate massive revenues.

Real Madrid already has a specialized department within its organizational structure dedicated to technological development, known as the "Transformation Department," which reports directly to General Director José Ángel Sánchez. This digital focus has materialized in the "RM Next" initiative, which concentrates on six areas of work.

These areas include e-health, performance, fan engagement, audiovisual content production, cybersecurity, and technological and social infrastructures. The initiative has its own website, and Florentino Pérez personally oversees negotiations with Apple to create the "Infinite Bernabéu," which will fully usher the club into modernity.

Florentino Pérez and Real Madrid's vision is to offer various seating options, from the front row to behind the goal, to billions of people simultaneously. This requires broadcasting matches using 360-degree cameras, in addition to the traditional cameras that provide signals to television platforms.

In this way, a fan enjoying the match in the metaverse will feel as if they are sitting in the stands, next to a real fan at the Bernabéu, all in real-time.

While current technology allows for a fully immersive user experience, there is still significant room for development. Broadcasting costs, as well as the costs for fans, need to be evaluated, given that Apple Vision Pro VR glasses cost around 3,000 euros in Spain.

For an even better experience, spatial audio AirPods, which direct sound and intensity based on head movement and event direction, might be needed. This would make not only the visuals realistic but also the sounds heard in the stadium. However, many brands offer affordable VR glasses with 4K resolution.

This ambitious project faces challenges, primarily the widespread use of smartphones, which perform all functions, making it difficult for the general public, especially young people, to acquire other more expensive devices like VR glasses.

Recent market studies indicate that only 5% of Gen Z and millennial viewers use VR technology, although 70% are attracted to it, and 63% are willing to pay to experience it. While the immersive experience can be highly appealing, younger audiences are accustomed to following sports events while simultaneously browsing data and interacting with comments, which poses a significant challenge.

Added to this is the legal challenge concerning the extent to which clubs can independently exploit this content economically – another battle. However, Real Madrid has already begun working to give its new stadium infinite capacity in the metaverse.

Major European clubs are working to enter this parallel virtual world, with Manchester United and Manchester City notably competing with Real Madrid in this race. In February 2022, City was the first club in the world to announce the construction of a virtual stadium in the metaverse, an idea now embraced by Florentino Pérez. City is building this stadium in collaboration with the Japanese multinational Sony.

However, Manchester United is ahead in this field. In August 2024, the club hosted an astonishing immersive experience in an innovative space known as "The Dome" in Los Angeles. This experience captivated the entire world, showcasing the opening Premier League match between the "Red Devils" and Fulham.

Inside "The Dome," tables were arranged like stands, and viewers were surrounded by a massive 892-square-meter high-definition LED screen. This setup created the illusion of being at the heart of the match, fully immersing attendees in the game's events, where they also heard all the stadium sounds. Cosm was responsible for organizing this event.

An official described the event, saying: "The Dome is more than just a front-row seat." Indeed, those who attended the experience lived the match as one of the 75,000 spectators gathered at Old Trafford. It was not surprising that tickets cost $22 for a general stand location and over $100 for more exclusive areas simulating front-row seating.

United relies on Cosm, one of the most advanced shared virtual reality companies in the world. Additionally, the club has established an internal "Web3" department to develop its presence in the metaverse, aiming beyond merely creating a virtual Old Trafford to grant its fans access to digital ownership.

The club is already marketing matches in the metaverse that can be viewed using VR glasses via platforms such as Sky Worlds, Oculus Quest, and Horizon Worlds.