League One Wows U.S. Fans With Immersive Experience
USA-based fans witnessed Sky Bet League One football getting the big screen treatment at Cosm’s immersive entertainment venues in Los Angeles and Dallas, watching the midweek clash between Wrexham and Barnsley.
The EFL is now only the second football league in the world to have matches presented at Cosm’s new and innovative experience, which broadcasts and replicates live sports events within a theatre, cinema or auditorium environment on a 87 foot high, 180-degree, domed screen.
Fans who attended the broadcasts at the two purpose-built Cosm centres – which included Wrexham co-chairman Rob McElhenney, actor Danny De Vito and the cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, and members of the LA Chargers NFL team at the LA venue – enjoyed Wrexham’s Ollie Rathbone driving home a 92nd-minute winner to claim a tense a 1-0 win for the home side.
The immersive-experience technology from the 8K cameras installed at the stadium, simulated the experience of the fans as if they were at the STōK Cae Ras, despite watching on from almost 5,300 miles away.
Speaking of the experience, Wrexham co-chairman, McElhenney, said: “I really wasn’t sure what to expect (of Cosm) as I’d only seen a little bit previously…but it’s absolutely incredible.
“(With me were) a mixture of my friends and family, some co-workers from the various shows and Caitlin’s co-workers from her show, and then all the Wrexham fans from the south-west.
“(Cosm) is such a great opportunity to experience a game with other people and for the Wrexham fans who can’t travel five or six thousand miles. You get to cheer on and commiserate with fellow fans.
“You look around, it’s a Tuesday 11.45am in the morning. Hundreds and thousands have people have showed up for the game. It’s so clear that the EFL has its roots now all over the United States, and people want to experience the game with other people.”
EFL USA broadcast partners CBS Sports and Cosm announced that a minimum of six Sky Bet EFL matches are to be broadcast, with a further additional EFL match at Cosm to be announced at a later date.
EFL Chief Executive, Trevor Birch, said: “To be one of the first football leagues in the world to feature on Cosm demonstrates the rising global appeal and popularity of EFL competitions.
“So far this season, the coverage of the EFL in the USA has reached heights we’ve never seen before thanks to our partnership with CBS Sports. We look forward to more USA-based fans in experiencing the excitement and jeopardy of the Sky Bet EFL in the matches to be broadcast on Cosm to come.”
Alongside Wrexham and Barnsley, fans of Birmingham City, Sheffield United, Coventry City, Burnley, Huddersfield Town and Leeds United will enjoy matches in the Cosm shared reality experience this season.
Head of Marketing at Cosm, Mazen Alawar, said: “That was an incredible first EFL match at Cosm. Anybody who has been to an EFL game live knows that the energy is unmatched.
“The fans are incredibly passionate and the love that we felt all the way over here in America from both the Wrexham and Barnsley supporters that showed up was just electric.”
Sheffield United and Burnley’s Boxing Day clash will be the next match to be broadcast at Cosm later this month.
