Tech takes Champions
League title

For once, the tech lived up to the hype.

The 2025 UEFA Champions League Final at Munich’s Allianz Arena on Saturday night delivered a showcase of how technology can elevate a football spectacle, both before and during the game. 

The pitch gleamed under precision-engineered LED lighting, fans uploaded in real-time thanks to industrial-strength Wi-Fi, and AI-powered interactions gave spectators an up-close feel to a game played on a faraway pitch.

Allianz Arena, home to Bayern Munich, shines with its tech credentials. Its pitch maintenance system is a feat of modern engineering: the first full-pitch LED grow-light setup in the world. It is tuned by sensors and fed by algorithms to adjust light spectrum, intensity, and timing for optimal grass health. The result was a pristine playing surface worthy of a final: part horticulture, part science fiction.

This innovation came from the Dutch company Signify, which installed over 240 LED grow lights suspended from moveable rigs, enabling constant micromanagement of turf quality regardless of weather. Integrated data feeds allow pitch managers to monitor chlorophyll levels and turf density with forensic precision. The Allianz Arena has effectively turned groundskeeping into a data science.

Above the turf, Cisco’s Wi-Fi 6 deployment meant 75,000 fans served as active participants in a connected spectacle. The new wireless infrastructure, implemented as part of Cisco’s partnership with Bayern Munich, delivered high-density coverage across the stadium. Spectators uploaded photos, streamed instant replays, and engaged on social media platforms with a stability and speed that rivaled enterprise-grade campuses.

Cisco’s real-time analytics tracked bandwidth consumption, enabling load-balancing across access points, while fans benefited from seamless app integrations including wayfinding, ordering concessions, and augmented reality overlays. Cisco’s promise of a “connected venue experience” was made manifest in every part of the matchday journey. Or, at least, every part within the stadium.

Oppo’s presence, as the Official Smartphone Product Partner of the UEFA Champions League, added a layer of interactive flair. Fans snapped AI selfies with a virtual Lamine Yamal, met Marco Materazzi in digital and flesh, and trialled camera features that let even nosebleed-seat holders capture goalmouth action like pros. From AI unblur to enhanced zoom, the photography toolkit reflected Oppo’s ambition to stand out beyond branding.

_{Photo: ARTHUR GOLDSTUCK.}

Being a little old school, I chose to pose with Brazilian legend Kaka. The Oppo AI was exceptionally clever. No, not in the way it superimposed me alongside Kaka, but how it cut 30 years off my appearance. 

_{Football legend Kaka shares a moment with an AI-enhanced Arthur Goldstuck, courtesy Oppo.}

Inside the Champions Village, Oppo laid out a showroom of its AI-powered features. From stabilised long-range zoom to adaptive low-light photography, the devices proved themselves in real-world stadium conditions. Its AI Eraser removed background clutter from photos; its AI Highlight Video balanced dynamic range under stadium lights.

On the eve of the match, Oppo went beyond tech demonstrations. Kaká, Cafu, and Micah Richards led football clinics with youth athletes from Brazil. These were structured development sessions, complete with Oppo gear capturing every move. On match day, Oppo hosted a hybrid cultural event featuring Cuju, the ancient Chinese football-like sport, with young female footballers from China.

The Chinese company’s commitment extended to grassroots development. In Brazil, it renovated pitches in São Paulo; in Egypt, it launched a youth league with The Maker Football School; in Mexico, it partnered with UNESCO to support football education. Oppo may have entered the Champions League through a tech sponsorship door, but its footprint stretched into genuine community engagement.

Then came the match. PSG’s 5–0 performance against Inter Milan displayed brutal efficiency. Goals from Hakimi, Doué (twice), Kvaratskhelia and Mayulu carved history as the largest margin in a Champions League Final. The French club, long associated with its galáctico strategy, secured the title in a season focused on cohesion over celebrity.

PSG’s dismantling of Inter unfolded in phases. The first goal — a clinical tap-in from Hakimi — was built on a lightning transition. Doué’s deflected shot made it two, and his composed second-half finish sealed the contest. Kvaratskhelia and Mayulu added flourish. At 5–0, the final broke a 69-year record for the biggest winning margin in a European Cup Final. The crowd responded with awe and pyrotechnics.

A night of celebration stood in the making.

The tech narrative faltered at the final whistle.

As fans exited the Allianz Arena, they entered a logistical vacuum. The seamless security operation inside the stadium ended abruptly beyond its perimeter. Once across an unseen boundary, attendees navigated on instinct.

Police blocked roads without warning and offered no guidance. Signs stayed absent, loudspeakers silent, officials nowhere in sight. The result: stretches of pavement swarmed with people unsure of where to turn. Some searched for rideshares unable to access the area, others hunted for shuttle stops that no longer existed.

Crosswalks fell out of bounds. Barriers redirected foot traffic into cul-de-sacs. Officers remained rooted to their five-metre jurisdictions, eyes averted as the crowd swelled and splintered.

Phones – so efficient minutes earlier –  strained under network pressure. The AI that simulated smiles and removed blur failed to suggest a route to the nearest tram.

The contrast jarred. Inside offered a glimpse of the future. Outside demanded a return to survival mode.

This sets the benchmark. Smart stadiums benefit from smart exits. Innovation must stretch to the journey home. Otherwise, even the most advanced football event in history lingers in memory for the disarray after the lights went down.

• Passionate football follower Arthur Goldstuck was a guest of Oppo at the Champion’s League final. He is editor-in-chief of Gadget and author of ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to AI’.