Transforming Live Sports Production: The Dubai Rugby Sevens Experience

In the ever-evolving landscape of live sports broadcasting, achieving seamless workflows while maintaining high standards of quality is crucial. At Badger & Combes, we excel in delivering top-notch live production services that focus on scalable, remote operations, ideal for complex, multi-location events. Our commitment to reliability, flexibility, and efficiency enables us to tackle high-pressure projects head-on.

The Challenge of the Dubai Rugby Sevens

The Dubai Rugby Sevens is an internationally recognized tournament that showcases elite teams from both men’s and women’s divisions worldwide. During the 2025 event, held from November 28 to 30, a staggering 664 matches unfolded across a vast multi-sport venue. Our task was to ensure that every game was streamed live, reaching audiences through YouTube, the event’s official website, and its dedicated app.

Producing a live event of such magnitude, especially with hundreds of matches taking place in various locations, presents unique challenges. Centered thousands of miles away, our production hub needed to maintain uninterrupted live coverage, all while adhering to a strict no-downtime policy.

Innovative Live Streaming Solutions

For the 2025 tournament, we adopted an advanced remote production workflow designed for smooth global distribution. At the core of our operation was a Haivision-powered network, which offered scalability, efficiency, and unwavering reliability essential for live sports broadcasts. Utilizing Haivision’s contribution solutions alongside the Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) protocol, we constructed a robust broadcast network capable of withstanding the demanding nature of live sports.

Rather than setting up a cumbersome broadcast environment on-site, we leveraged a versatile and lightweight contribution model. SRT enabled low-latency, secure video streaming over unpredictable networks, allowing us to operate from our central hub in Manchester while managing post-production processes live from Dubai.

On the ground in Dubai, we deployed an impressive array of technology, including 12 cameras linked to multiple Haivision mobile video transmitters across eight different pitches. The main stadium utilized a Haivision Pro460 mobile transmitter, effectively handling various camera feeds thanks to its multiview capability. A secondary Pro460 unit at the engineering station facilitated the intake of additional pitch feeds alongside an RF camera, ensuring real-time communication between teams in both locations.

A Unified Production Experience

Throughout the event, our setup featured seven Haivision Air mobile transmitters and a Falkon X2 transmitter, stationed at strategic camera positions. This network ensured consistent, low-latency live video contribution and enabled return feeds for engineers to monitor all activities. A Haivision Air unit also facilitated audio communications and file transfers, allowing seamless coordination between our Manchester team and the Dubai crew, a staggering 3,000 miles apart.

Every camera feed was transmitted over the internet via SRT with a latency as low as 1.5 seconds, reaching Haivision StreamHub receivers in Manchester. Here, feeds were processed for replay, graphics, and post-production before being disseminated to various digital platforms. This setup proved incredibly dependable, as every incoming feed was recorded, creating a backup archive for future reference.

By integrating Haivision technology into our workflows, we redefined how live production can operate over long distances. The entire system supported effective live switching, replay, and real-time communication, accomplishing tasks that once required extensive on-site resources.

In conclusion, the innovative setup allowed us to deliver live coverage of all 664 matches without major technical difficulties. Our compact production footprint, requiring only three cases of equipment, was lightweight, easy to deploy, and cost-effective, paving the way for a new era in remote sports broadcasting. For more insights on our technology and services, visit Haivision’s website.