Vodafone Park Rests on Top of History

Located in Istanbul, Turkey, this stadium is the home of the Beşiktaş J.K. sports club, as well as the 114-year old Beşiktaş Football club, AKA “The Black Eagles.” Because of this, it is known as “The Eagle’s Nest” by locals. It is the venue of countless national Süper Lig and UEFA Champions League games each year, and it casts an instantly-recognizable silhouette on the edge of the Bosphorus Strait.

The plot of land that it sits upon has hosted football matches since 1947, and after its demolition, the walls and pillars of the historic BJK İnönü Stadium were integrated into the modern design of Vodafone Park—a fusion of the past and the future.

Vodafone Park prides itself on being a smart stadium—while on the premises, fans can enjoy live in-house streaming footage of games via Cisco StadiumVision, as well as high speed Wi-fi.

“We made a smart stadium concept successful,” says Mehtap Karataş, who serves as the Sponsorships Marketing Officer of Beşiktaş J.K. “Other clubs now want to reach this level of security and technology in their stadiums.”

The multi-purpose stadium has a capacity of 43,500 spectators, received the Green Economy Environmentally Friendly Award in 2015, and was voted Stadium of the Year in 2016. Today, it stands proudly as a modern landmark in a city blessed with a seemingly endless number of historic and iconic locales. The fans and members of Beşiktaş J.K. are passionate and loyal, and watching over their safety during football matches would be no small feat for the operators of the Eagle’s Nest.

They had their work cut out for them.

Guarding The Eagle’s Nest

When Vodafone Park officially opened to the public on April 10, 2016, Beşiktaş J.K. had one priority in mind: Risk mitigation. Illegal entries into the park were an ongoing concern, coupled with a need to provide constant safety for thousands of spectators during the emotionally- charged atmosphere of a football match.

The security team at Beşiktaş J.K. deployed a legacy CCTV system in the stadium, and soon realized that it was not up to their expectations. They needed a surveillance system with improved image clarity and lower bandwidth, and were looking for a stronger solution to integrate with their existing system.

Stadium security involves the reduction of blind spots to provide as much area coverage as possible, while being able to deliver detailed images such as a face out of a crowd of thousands.

When it comes to stadium seating, Vodafone Park houses some unique design features: 144 executive suites, and the “1903 Lounge,” designed to hold exactly 1903 spectators, named after the year Beşiktaş J.K. was founded. It also contains 2,123 square metres (6,965 square feet) of restaurants, 2,520 square metres (8,268 square feet) of terrace restaurants, and VIP parking for 600 vehicles.

Covering all of that space to the degree that Beşiktaş required was no small feat, but the Avigilon solution was designed to handle a wide range of situations, including this one.

Update And Expand

A stadium the size of Vodafone Park needs comprehensive security coverage, which is why Sensormatic Güvenlik Hizmetleri A.Ş. installed over 500 Avigilon cameras for Beşiktaş J.K.

"The installation included solutions that implemented self- learning video analytics for their accurate detection of people and vehicles in critical areas, as well as Avigilon high-definition Dome, Bullet, and PTZ cameras, with over 40 servers running ACCTM software."

Additionally, the use of award-winning 7K (30 MP) HD Pro cameras allowed them to cover wide areas of the stadium while simultaneously delivering exceptional image detail to zoom in and quickly identify and respond to potential security events. The completed system helps monitor and track activities during matches, while also helping to decrease illegal entry. This comprehensive security solution isn’t just a matter of safety; it also helps drive business towards Vodafone Park and gives peace of mind to prospective supporters of Beşiktaş J.K.

“With this CCTV system, we started to sell more tickets,” says Mehtap Karataş, who serves as the Sponsorships Marketing Officer of Beşiktaş J.K. “We used this system like a marketing tool. If we want to sell tickets, families need to know that this is a safe place to come. People of all ages should come to our stadium knowing that they will be safe; that’s very important to us.”

Since installing the Avigilon suite of solutions, Beşiktaş J.K. has already seen results: Several attempts to enter the stadium illegally have been detected and stopped. Additionally, this enhanced level of safety and protection has led to a higher level of fan satisfaction and an increase in ticket sales.

Most importantly, it has given Vodafone Park a suite of security solutions smart enough to keep up with its future-forward design and its passionate fans.

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