Aurora, a leading production company, has recently unveiled its innovative "North-South" remote production workflow. This new approach was implemented in their partnership with the Women’s Soccer League (WSL), marking a significant shift in sports broadcasting.
In its inaugural year as the WSL's production partner, Aurora produced over 300 live matches across various leagues including the WSL, WSL2 and Women’s League Cup. The company also delivered more than 500 digital highlights packages and 22 weekly highlights programmes for the BBC.
Moreover, they created over 200 original films and social-first features to further engage fans of women's football. This extensive coverage not only included all fixtures not shown by Sky Sports or BBC but also live streams of every WSL2 game on YouTube.
North-South model
At the core of this successful season was Aurora's newly developed "North-South" remote production workflow. This model involved operating from two remote hubs located in Woking and Leeds respectively.
The company partnered with Vivid Broadcast in Woking and Sticks & Glass in Leeds to produce all live coverage of the leagues. This unique model aims to support regional production capability while fostering local workforce growth and nurturing emerging broadcast talent.
The "North-South" model introduced by Aurora boasts several key features. Firstly, the implementation of this model led to the creation of new infrastructure including Outside Broadcasting (OB) trucks, a Master Control Room (MCR), remote galleries, and studio and editing facilities.
Secondly, at the heart of this model is a cloud-based remote production infrastructure that enables seamless coordination between different locations. This innovative approach has revolutionized how sports broadcasts are managed and produced. Thirdly, Aurora placed an increased emphasis on digital storytelling which allowed them to deliver more engaging content such as highlight reels and original films. Lastly, Aurora also worked on brand partner activations which further enhanced the visibility of WSL across various platforms.
Graphics and solutions
In addition to these features, Hyper Studios provided graphics using a blend of cloud and on-premise solutions. This combination allowed for a more flexible and efficient production process.
Zarah Al-Kudcy, chief revenue officer of WSL Football, said:
“This season has marked an important step forward in the continued growth of both leagues. Working together with Aurora, we have been able to innovate and expand access for fans, increase the visibility of both leagues and create a more consistent and accessible viewing experience across broadcast and digital platforms. The scale and quality of coverage delivered this season reflects both the growing interest in women’s football and the ambition for where the game can go next.”
Aurora's innovative "North-South" remote production workflow represents a significant advancement in sports broadcasting. By leveraging cloud-based infrastructure and focusing on digital storytelling, they have been able to deliver an unprecedented amount of content while supporting local talent growth. As we move forward, this model could serve as an inspiration for other sports leagues looking to enhance their broadcast capabilities.
