The size and scope of Super Bowl LVI is undeniable. Well over 100 million viewers around the world, 70,000+ fans in SoFi Stadium, media from across the globe, a historic half-time musical performance, and two teams competing to be named Super Bowl LVI champions.
What is also undeniable is the scope and scale of the Cisco converged network infrastructure at SoFi Stadium that played a critical role in the success of Super Bowl LVI. Each year there is significant growth in network traffic and Super Bowl LVI raised the bar yet again.
Let’s break down the key stats and how it all came together.
The Cisco converged network processed more than 53 petabytes of traffic over network infrastructure on the day of the Super Bowl. The network averaged 5.1 terabits per second (Tbps) in the hours leading up to and following the game, while it averaged 12.1 Tbps during the actual Super Bowl itself.
To put that into context…peta indicates multiplication by the fifth power of 1,000, so a petabyte is equal to one quadrillion (1,000,000,000,000,000) bytes…or 1,000,000 gigabytes…or 1,000 terabytes. Scientists have estimated the human brain capacity is around 2.5 petabytes, so when we say that SoFi Stadium saw more than 53 petabytes, that is truly mind-blowing stuff and unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
The Cisco converged network touches every aspect of stadium operations; broadcast, show production, concessions, merchandise sales, fan experiences, and building operations.
During Super Bowl LVI, the broadcast network alone was processing 24 terabits per second, possible because of the Cisco IP Media Fabric in SoFi Stadium. When you look at IPTV specifically, driving 2,500 screens and 300 outdoor signs across SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, the network was transporting 2.5 gigabits per second of multicast traffic – continuously. That’s more than 200 terabytes of data flowing seamlessly to ensure that each and every screen in the venue is getting full, uncompressed 4K video feeds.
Cisco and our partners have been preparing for years for this moment, collaborating with the incredible team at SoFi Stadium to monitor and constantly evaluate the network performance. Night in and night out, when hosting some of L.A’s biggest events, they are delivering incredible results, breaking records, and showcasing the power of what happens when a venue is built on Cisco enterprise network technology.
Super Bowl LVI also provided Cisco an amazing opportunity to support our NFL partners, specifically the league’s cybersecurity organization. Cisco’s security technology and on-the-ground talent, including our Talos organization, helped deliver a secure and resilient Super Bowl LVI.
What a fantastic first season as An Official Technology Partner of the NFL and continued partner of SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park.
Explore Cisco Technology at SoFi Stadium
Related Links
Blog: NFL Teams Up with Cisco to Secure Super Bowl LVI
Newsroom: Super Bowl LVI: SoFi Stadium’s end-to-end Cisco Network
Super Bowl LVI: How SoFi Stadium Is Powered By Cisco And Integrator AmpThink
Matt, great description of how Cisco supported the superbowl!
Thank you for the valuable insight, Matt, out of interest, how many site tags did you configure for this deployment?
Did you use multiple tags to intentionally load balanced across wncd processes?