CHAMPIONS LEAGUE matches have used incredible hidden technology throughout the season.

But have you noticed it?

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Viktor Gyokeres took his second penalty of the match to close out the scoring. emphatic 4-1 victory in Ruben Amorim’s last home match as boss of Sporting.

After exploding to the left of Ederson with his first penalty, he changed direction and chose to go down to the right of the Manchester City goalkeeper and completed his Champions League hat trick.

With the usual TV camera angle, the advertising boards around the pitch all showed Qatar Airways against a purple background as the striker approached and fired home.

However, replays of the goal broadcast on TNT SportsPhotographers’ pictures and videos taken inside the stadium did not show Qatar Airways advertising.

Instead, the screens displayed advertisements for FedEx with the iconic blue and orange writing on a plain white background.

This meant that the advertisements on the boards showing the goal live on television were different from what was actually in the stadium.

The discrepancy was evident in a video posted online since Ines Aguiar, girlfriend of Portuguese actress Gyokereswho filmed the goal and put it on his Instagram story.

The time, 9:38 p.m., was the same in his images as it was in the TV images – but the adverts were not the same.

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When the TV feed of a fan in the crowd was interrupted, there appeared a brief white flash at the top of the advertising screen – possibly covering the FedEx ad.

And UEFA confirmed to SunSport that the adverts were indeed being changed for the main broadcast feed.

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Explaining the phenomenon, a spokesperson said: “UEFA’s Virtual Board Replacement (VBR) concept has been implemented during some men’s club competition matches during the 2024 season- 25.

“VBR replaces advertisements displayed on stadium LED boards in selected markets with alternative advertisements and messages on the main global broadcast feed.

“This approach ensures compliance with local advertising regulations while preserving sponsor visibility in the global broadcast stream.

“This override is only visible on the main broadcast camera (camera 1) during live playback.

“No substitutions are made on any other camera during the live match feed or on any camera, including the first, during replays.

“VBR can be implemented remotely or on-site and can be implemented on any LED board.

“UEFA has appointed several VBR providers to manage this process and produce the dedicated feeds.

“UEFA has been testing VBR technology for six years, with its first official implementation during the 2021-2024 cycle of UEFA men’s club competitions, starting with the 2021 UEFA Super Cup in Belfast.

“VBR was also used throughout Euro 2024 in Germany this summer.”

Supponor is a company that offers VBR services, using “the world’s first AI software delivering supercharged virtual advertising in live sports broadcasts.”

The company specializes in using AI to transform live streams and adapt advertising for different broadcast languages ​​and regions.

Their website states: “Supponor provides a virtual advertising technology solution that replaces and creates on-site brand placements with authentic, real-time digital overlays. Developed for any sport, any surface, from anywhere in the world with endless possibilities.

This may include edit advertising panels at the edge of the fieldvirtual carpet-type banners next to the goals, tunnel coverings and other LED screens around the stadiums.

This can often be used to exclude betting advertisements in which gambling is prohibited.

The FA, Bayern Munich, La Liga, Argentina, France, Borussia Dortmund, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Germany, Serie A, Rugby World Cup and NHL are all Supponor customers.

The Cinch Tennis Championships – aka Queen’s – also used the technology in the 2024 tournament. to change the screens behind the field for different viewers.

SunSport reported in 2018 that Southampton were planning to become the Tenth Premier League team to launch new augmented reality panels in Sainte-Marie.

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