How Stockport County Turned Edgeley Park Digital With ADI
Stockport County had a simple brief: modernise Edgeley Park, upgrade the matchday experience and, crucially, build a commercial platform that could pay its own way.
“Working with stadium technology specialist ADI, Stockport County has installed digital infrastructure that has already translated into increased revenue, evidence that the right mix of LED inventory, commercial strategy and operational support can turn digital transformation into measurable return.
Claire Fitzgerald-Firth, Head of Engagement & Client Services at ADI said the opportunity started with the club’s ambition as much as its constraint.
“As a lower league club, they were commercially challenged but had a real ambition and desire to elevate the whole matchday experience and their commercial platform,” she explains.
That combination triggered a consultative programme designed to show not only what a more digital stadium could look like, but how it could be sold—week in, week out—to new and existing partners. Since the installation went live, Stockport County has reported a 25% uplift in revenue, underlining how digital assets can expand inventory, improve partner visibility and create more valuable sponsorship packages than traditional static boards.
Building a digital venue at Edgeley Park
ADI’s delivery at Edgeley Park centred on creating premium, flexible LED inventory and the network to run it reliably. The club now has an 81.3m² fine-pitch LED big screen, a four-sided digiBOARD perimeter system and upgraded lounge and internal signage – all integrated via ADI’s Live Venue fibre network for content delivery.
Creative and graphics support, remote system monitoring and matchday technical assistance complete the platform, ensuring the digital estate is not only installed, but consistently activated. The work supports Stockport County’s wider plan to future-proof a historic stadium while creating a modern partner proposition – one that can flex by fixture, audience segment and campaign, rather than relying on a single static message for 90 minutes.
The commercial model: making the tech pay back What differentiates this project is that the strategy work ran in parallel with the installation. Fitzgerald-Firth describes it as “a consultative piece that not just showed visualisations of what it would look like if they did transform their static stadium into a place of LED but also how we were going to make it work.”
That meant mapping inventory to realistic demand, building a pricing structure that could be sold locally and nationally, and showing stakeholders what uplift was achievable under different scenarios.
“There was a big consultative process that included a commercial modelling exercise,” Fitzgerald-Firth says. “That was essential to show them how and what their potential revenue uplift would be against the statics they had at the time.”
From that modelling, ADI helped structure tiered partnership packages, where “the higher value packages get more inventory and greater exposure on the LED” and entry-level options provide an accessible route for local businesses.
To help the club go to market, ADI also created sales and marketing collateral – “a digital toolbox that sells the club” – so the commercial team could package and pitch the new assets with confidence.
More LED, more inventory and a stronger sponsor proposition
At a practical level, the digiBOARD system expands what the club can sell during a single fixture: multiple advertisers can rotate through the same physical space, partners can be segmented by tier and campaigns can be tailored to specific moments in the matchday schedule.
Fitzgerald-Firth’s advice to the club was straightforward. “The more LED they had, the more inventory they have,” she says. Rather than settling for a traditional three-sided “TV arch”, the club opted for four-sided perimeter LED to maximise inventory and future revenue potential.
As Fitzgerald-Firth puts it, clubs “often think that’s all they need or all that’s possible. But it’s not.” Even with physical constraints around a full mid-tier ribbon, the club has added additional LED space above hospitality areas, creating a useful bridge between premium pitchside exposure and entry-level visibility for smaller local partners.
Operational delivery: content, playout and matchday production
Digital inventory only delivers value if it is reliably operated, scheduled and integrated with partner obligations. Stockport County runs matchdays via ADI’s Live Venue network, connected back to the company’s Preston operations.
“We’re operating all those LED assets on a matchday and non-matchdays,” she says, with ADI producing the creative and content and managing playout across the screens and perimeter inventory.
“From around 45 minutes before kickoff whatever is seen on the big screen is being played out by a dedicated team of producers at our base in Preston,” she adds, with the programme schedule weaving commercial commitments into the wider stadium show. For clubs with lean teams, that end-to-end model also reduces operational risk.
“Having a single delivery partner creates clear accountability and a much smoother process from start to finish,” Fitzgerald-Firth says. “Clubs know exactly who to go to throughout the project – and that’s ADI.” The objective is to “take the headache away from the clubs helping them commercialise it and giving them the collateral to do it,” while keeping production standards consistently high across the season.
A repeatable playbook for clubs outside the top tier
Stockport County’s results are drawing attention from other League One, League Two and Championship clubs facing similar pressures: ageing infrastructure, flat commercial growth and partners that expect more measurable value. Fitzgerald-Firth is clear that access to this kind of capability can’t be limited to the elite.
“There’s a perception in the football market that ADI is a premium brand and out of reach for some clubs, but that’s not the case,” she says. “We’ve got something for everybody.”
With over 23 clubs on their Live Venue platform and services delivered to 32 clubs across the season, ADI is positioning the model as scalable, built around right-sized technology, realistic commercial planning and dependable delivery.
The lesson from Edgeley Park is that LED alone is not the strategy. When inventory is designed for sellability, priced through evidence-based modelling and supported by a production engine that consistently executes, digital infrastructure becomes a commercial asset – not a cost line.
For Stockport County, the combination has created new ways to package sponsorship, broaden brand appeal and keep matchday presentation moving with the expectations of modern audiences.
About ADI
With over 35 years of experience in LED screen technologies, sports presentation and creative content, ADI helps clubs plan, specify and deliver joined-up stadium platforms that improve fan experience, strengthen commercial return and reduce project risk. From LED screens and control systems to matchday production and content, ADI delivers end-to-end solutions trusted by clubs and venues across sport. Visit www.adi.tv for more!
