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39Sports Lighting

5. Lighting for TelevisionThe television transmission of sporting action has advanced rapidly in recent years, with more and more sports being covered – and many sports growing in popularity as a result of TV exposure. Television coverage demands appropriate lighting, with strict requirements for illuminance and uniformity towards the camera. Vertical illuminance will also need to be calculated, for good visibility of the players, with measurements taken 1 to 1.5 metres above the playing surface. Lighting that does not meet particular broadcasting requirements will be insuffi cient for slow motion replays and close-up shots, while the resulting small depth of fi eld could mean that players in different planes will not be in focus at the same time.

5.1 Colour AppearanceThe same colour temperature should be used in all areas of the sports arena. A value between

4000K and 6500K is recommended where the fl oodlighting is used during the day and into the evening. This is to minimise apparent colour changes in the scene. The colour rendering index should be no less than 80 and should preferably be 90.

5.2 Atmospheric Absorption LossesDust and humidity in the air can result in light losses due to dispersion, depending on the locality of the stadium, the projection distance of fl oodlights and atmospheric conditions at the time. The CIE recommends that a discount of 30% of light output should be included in the lighting calculations.

5.3 Positioning of LuminairesGiven that illuminance should be calculated perpendicular to the camera, the positioning of the luminaires should be carefully planned, in order to ensure suffi cient illuminance. Where a

number of camera positions are used, the design should be based on the four vertical planes facing the sidelines. Achieving the required level will depend upon the type of system used. Distributed side lighting systems tend not to create harsh or disturbing shadows and create a more pleasant visual environment for spectators at an event or watching it on television.

Column heights can be estimated by ensuring that the angle subtended at the centre of the pitch to the head-frame centre shall be not less than 25 degrees – and no luminaire should be aimed above 70 degrees from the downward vertical, in order to control glare and the amount of light spill outside the facility. Where obtrusive light requirements are of great importance, column heights may need to be increased marginally.

5.4 Camera IlluminanceThis is the quantity of light

that shines in the direction of a fi xed camera position. Calculations should be carried out using the actual angles perpendicular to the camera positions. The player’s body should be the principal reference for a television camera. Illuminance should ideally also be considered for the playing object in fl ight, as this reading will differ from the camera illuminance at ground level. When events are regularly broadcasted from a sports ground or stadium, the fl oodlighting project will generally be designed to provide the highest vertical illuminance necessary to comply with television requirements

All sports are divided into three colour television (CTV) groups (A, B and C) for colour television classifi cation purposes; these are characterised primarily by the competition level and the speed of the ball (also the rapid movement of the

In the second part of his study, Mark Reilly, of Arup Consultant Engineers in Ireland, looks at the specifics of lighting stadiums for television broadcasts – and offers two detailed case studies from Manchester and Dublin

Sports Ground and Stadium Lighting (Part 2)

Fig. 9: Maintained vertical illuminance plotted against maximum shooting distance for CTV groups A, B and C.

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40 Sports Lighting

players must be taken in account). When the CTV group and the value of maximum shooting distance are known, the corresponding maintained vertical illuminance can be determined in accordance with the CIE and CIBSE Lighting Guide 4 (Fig. 9).

5.5 Glare ‘The degree to which a lighting installation causes glare depends upon the luminous intensity distribution and aiming of the luminaires, their number, their arrangement and mounting height and on the brightness of the illuminated area’.9

Factors to be considered when designing a lighting installation to reduce the effects of glare include:

a) Floodlights with a precise light control which are correctly pointed.

b) Floodlights are mounted far from the important observation

directions. Mounting angles measured from the centre of the fi eld should be higher than 20 degrees above the horizontal and higher than the camera views.

c) The use of the least number of fl oodlight groups or a one-sided disposition. The number of groups in any of the fi eld sides should not be greater than four.

d) Illuminance on the

fi eld of vision is as

high and uniform as

possible, consequent

with avoiding too

high brightness for

spectators across the

stadium. It should not

be greater than half

their average value on

the vertical over the

fi eld.

Fig. 10: West Stand

Fig. 11: Computer rendered view of the stadium at night

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41Sports Lighting

If these requirements are

met, the size and luminosity

of individual sources and the

number of fl oodlights in each

group is not very important

with respect to glare. They

have a stronger effect on

illuminance on the fi eld.

Experience has proved that

glare of a correctly planned

installation does not increase

with higher illuminance.

6. Case Studies6.1 City of Manchester StadiumThe £90 million, 48,000-seat City of Manchester Stadium served as the host venue for the XVII Commonwealth Games in 2002 and is now the home of Manchester City Football Club. Arup Consulting Engineers and Arup Associates architects won the commission for the stadium following a national

competition in 1998. The BBC, which has a long-standing association with the

Games, worked closely with the lighting design team to ensure that high standards of live broadcasts to a worldwide audience would be achieved.

The event lighting was designed to comply with Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) requirements. Some of the fl oodlights have hot re-strike control gear, backed up by standby generators to maintain 800lux, which is the minimum level for television to continue ‘live’ coverage in the event of a normal mains failure.

The Stadium’s electricity needs are served by two 2mW sub-stations, each in towers on the west and east stands. During an event these generators will serve the hot re-strike fl oodlights, but should a generator fail, the supply will automatically

Fig 13: Commissioning the lighting system

Fig 12: Daylight penetrates the Croke Park pitch

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42 Sports Lighting

switch back to mains. If mains power is not available, there is further back-up from a generator in the opposite stand.

The stadium has a state-of-the-art lighting system, with two PCs which control all the lighting, from the highly visible fl oodlights and decorative tower lighting to the corridor and basement lighting. The software automatically controls the lighting, for example switching between lighting programmes for day, evening and night – or bringing on fl oodlights in stages before events (for example during the two hours prior to a football match). The system also allows manual operation, for example to allow authorised personnel to control any lamp or block of lamps anywhere in the stadium.

6.2 Croke Park Stadium, DublinCroke Park in Dublin, Ireland, was built in 1884 to cater for Gaelic sports and is the sixth largest stadium in Europe, with a

capacity of 82,500. During the refurbishment the of the Lansdowne Road stadium, from February 2007 to October 2007, the stadium also hosted the Irish national rugby and soccer teams. Following the installation of permanent fl oodlights for the stadium in January 2007, many other GAA grounds around the country have also started to erect fl oodlights. The organisation now holds games in the evenings, whereas traditionally major matches were played almost exclusively on Sunday during daylight hours. The installation in Croke Park involved approximately 460 Thorn fl oodlights fi tted with 2kW metal halide lamps.

Since a variety of sports is played at the stadium, different lighting levels are required for each sport. Therefore a complex lighting control system, using programmable local controllers, was installed, to allow switching between the required lighting levels, for televised or non-televised soccer, rugby and Gaelic sports. Due to the stadium’s

multi-purpose usage, three sets of televised and non-televised lighting measurements were taken during commissioning, to comply with each sports association. This was a gruelling process, involving over 600 readings for each sport, including both television and non-televised levels. Aiming took place during the day, using a grid, based on a prepared drawing, laid on the playing surface where the aiming position of each lamp was indicated by a fl ag. A rifl e-type aiming attachment was used to aim the fl oodlight at the fl ag. The illuminance test was then carried out after dark, to ensure compliance with the standards.

Complex rendering software was used to position the lamps. Aiming angles for the fl oodlights are interlaced to eliminate shadows for the TV broadcasts and to create a uniform light level. The 2kW lamps are metal halide with a cylindrical quartz arc tube connected at each end.

An uninteruptable power supply is used to support the lighting system, to allow sporting events to continue after a mains power failure.

A side-lighting system was installed, but since the Hill 16 stand (located behind the goal-posts) has a height of only 16 metres, compared to the other stand heights of 35 metres, a corner-tower mast was needed to achieve television broadcasting uniformity standards. This mast has a raise and lower system, which allows it to be lowered when not in use, to reduce its impact on the stadium’s architectural appearance.

Local residents had expressed concerns about obstructive light caused by the fl oodlight installation, so all the calculations and measurements were examined by a third party company, working in the interests of the environment.

The stadium has a purpose-built lighting control system, using a single touch-screen PC to switch easily between different lighting levels for different events. In the event of the control system failing, all fl oodlights are turned on, rather than failing.

7. ConclusionsIn this paper, I have attempted to highlight some of the special considerations that go into the design, installation and management of a lighting system for a sports ground or stadium. As sporting facility requirements are constantly changing and developing, installations that simply duplicate features from previous schemes will not be competitive or adequate.

The quality of lighting for sports is important to

Fig 14: The fi rst fl oodlit fi xture at Croke Park – a Gaelic match between Dublin and Tyrone

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their success, because it is essential to create a good atmosphere and high visibility, with little or no restriction. Spectators need lighting to clearly see what is going on from every seat, photographers need enough light for image acquisition to immortalise an event, television broadcasters need the broadcast pictures of the highest quality – and advertisers rely on colour fi delity to promote their brand identity.

Every sport has its own lighting requirements, so sports grounds or stadiums holding multi-sport events need to generate the different levels of required lighting from the same lighting system. At large stadiums, lighting levels must be suffi cient to fulfi l CTV broadcasting requirements, including the future possibility of high defi nition TV (HDTV).

Key trends for the future at the high-end of sports stadium lighting include the move towards more theatrical/dramatic experience in broadcasting, fl exible lighting systems, cleaner, sharper images, reductions in light pollution

for neighbours and the minimisation of energy consumption (i.e. more effi cient luminaires).

For more information contact the author on +353 (0)1 614 4200 or at mark.reilly@arup.com

References1 Guide for the Lighting

of Sports Events for Colour Television and Film Systems (C.I.E. Publication 83) (1989)

2 Guide to the artifi cial lighting of indoor and outdoor sports venues (Philips Lighting) (1996)

3 Lighting Engineering (Indalux Technical Lighting) (2002)

4 Sports Stadium and Sport Arena Lighting Controls (Pekka Hakkaraian/Lutron Electronics Ltd.) (2005)

5 Sports Lighting CIBSE Lighting Guide LG4 (London: Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) (2006)

6 The Outdoor Environment CIBSE Lighting Guide LG6 (London: The Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) (1992)

7 The Industrial Environment CIBSE Lighting Guide LG1 (London: Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers) (2001)

8 Light and lighting – Sports lighting (BS EN 12193:1999) (1999)

9 Glare Evaluation System for Use within Outdoor Sports and Area Lighting Technical Report (C.I.E. Publication 112) (2004)

AcknowledgementsPhilips Lighting Ltd., Abacus Lighting Ltd. and Project Lighting Ltd. for providing their opinions and publications on sport lighting design; Thorn Lighting Ltd. (Ireland) for allowing the site visits of the Croke Park Stadium during the lighting commissioning; All the engineers at the Arup Consulting Engineers, both at the Dublin offi ce and internationally, especially the Dublin BE01 group, for providing help, advice, material and support for this paper.