Elevating Safety Standards at Sporting Events

Large-scale sporting events require top-notch coordination, quick decision-making, and pinpoint precision when managing safety and security. With millions of fans attending college football games across the country, ensuring that every moment is secure for attendees, performers, athletes, and staff is no easy feat.

The Shifting Landscape of Safety at Sporting Events

Sporting events at the collegiate level are no longer just about the game; they are ecosystems of fans, operations teams, vendors, and performers, all flowing into a single crowded arena on game day. With over 37 million attendees reported at college football games in 2022, ensuring seamless coordination has never been more critical.

To enhance both fan experiences and operational workflows, universities are making significant infrastructural investments, such as robust stadium Wi-Fi. Modernized connectivity enables technologies like mobile ticketing, contactless food ordering, and crowd analytics—all of which enhance management capabilities. However, improved fan engagement means heightened demand for more sophisticated safety protocols to handle crowds in real-time.

This is exactly where SafeZone steps up to bridge the gap.

CriticalArc’s SafeZone® is a “game-changing” platform revolutionizing the way universities and event organizers manage safety, operational efficiency, and crowds. Designed with cutting-edge real-time location services (RTLS) technology, SafeZone enables management teams to excel at situational awareness while optimizing their responses to incidents.

From improving crowd control to providing better protections for student-athletes, SafeZone represents the gold standard in safety innovation for sprawling university campuses and massive sporting events.

What Makes SafeZone® a Game-Changer?

SafeZone provides event organizers and safety professionals with situational awareness in real-time, helping security teams respond quickly and precisely to incidents. With its seamless integration into other existing campus systems, SafeZone streamlines safety protocols, often unifying previously siloed systems.

Key benefits include:

  • Real-Time Location Sharing: SafeZone gives teams the ability to share their live location with other staff, security personnel, and volunteers, ensuring resources can be strategically directed wherever they’re needed on-site.
  • Incident Management & Notifications: Through its streamlined mobile app, teams can issue alerts, assign tasks, and log incidents rapidly without relying exclusively on traditional radio systems.
  • Enhanced Coordination: Whether managing logistics in large-scale settings or supporting smaller security teams, SafeZone helps eliminate inefficiencies in communication.

Proven Results

Texas A&M University

Handling some of the largest crowds in collegiate sports, Texas A&M University is supported by CriticalArc’s SafeZone to manage operations at their 100,000+ capacity stadiums. Assistant Chief of Police Kary Shaffer praised SafeZone’s exceptional efficiency in supporting the safeguarding of staff and attendees during the record-setting George Strait concert concert at Texas A&M, the largest ticketed concert in U.S. history.

“Nearly 112,000 people attended the event, and SafeZone allowed us to see officers across the stadium with clear situational awareness. When incidents arose, like lost children in the crowd, we used the notification system to quickly deploy resources, avoiding overcrowded radio channels.”

With over seven home football games annually welcoming similarly massive crowds, Texas A&M continues to refine and expand its SafeZone implementation for both staff and student safety. In coming advancements, the Aggies plan to extend SafeZone coverage to include their basketball and baseball venues.

Additionally, Texas A&M is preparing to roll out SafeZone’s groundbreaking indoor positioning technology, which delivers sub-3 meter accuracy for pinpoint locating of people and assets within buildings. This advanced feature was successfully tested during the College Football Kickoff with ESPN Game Day for the Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M opening game, showcasing its potential to enhance operational efficiency and emergency response capabilities during major events.

University of Kentucky

Another innovative use of SafeZone comes from the University of Kentucky. Joe Monroe, Chief of Police, mentioned plans of the platform being extended to ensure the safe travel of student-athletes.

“We’re optimizing SafeZone beyond campus to share locations and resources for traveling teams. This aligns with our shared alliance with other universities, giving us the capability to protect student-athletes wherever they go.”

Whether managing on-campus events or supporting off-campus safety needs, SafeZone is redefining operational best practices across the board.

 

Beyond Sporting Events—A Broader Vision for Safety

One aspect of what makes SafeZone truly unique is its effortless extension beyond sporting events into day-to-day campus life. The holistic safety system not only supports operational staff, but also fosters safety for all students and staff by tailoring its features for individual and group needs.

Athletes on travel teams can now be securely managed through a robust network integrated with existing university systems. This ensures a streamlined approach to safety during events, where emergency protocols can be activated and communicated promptly via mobile updates.

During events, emergency protocols can be instantly activated and shared through mobile updates during events, avoiding the need for loudspeaker announcements and minimizing confusion caused by crowd noise for responders relying on radios. This solution improves event safety while maintaining a seamless experience for everyone involved.

To further support students and staff, SafeZone offers a customizable wellbeing feature designed to direct users to university resources with the touch of a button, both on campus and while traveling. This capability empowers users to access mental health support and other university resources wherever they are, ensuring they feel supported at all times.

Are You Ready to Transform Your Events?

Whether you’re hosting 1,000 or 100,000 people, safety and coordination are key to delivering exceptional events. Learn more about SafeZone by getting in touch with our team today and see how this world-leading solution can revolutionize safety at your sporting events.

 

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