Atlanta

Mercedes-Benz Stadium sets records with historic technology

ATLANTA — Construction crews are putting the finishing touches on Mercedes-Benz Stadium before it opens on Aug. 26.

Last week, Channel 2's Craig Lucie told you about solar power at the stadium, how the stadium will conserve water and today, it was all about technology as he toured the new stadium.

Fans want to always be connected and share their experiences on social media. Fans will be able to do that and more.

The “nerve center” inside the stadium is where all of the magic happens. The magic can be found on more than 2,500 flat screens throughout the stadium and the halo board.

Steve Cannon, the CEO of the Arthur Blank Group, spoke about the screens and the beauty of the new stadium during the tour.

“As people come in and see the largest screen in the world, the halo board,  the reaction is 'wow,'” Cannon said. “The reaction to all of the amenities and the curation that went into the design, again, the reaction is 'wow.'”

The halo board is 1,100 linear feet, longer than the Eiffel Tower or the length of six White Houses placed side by side.

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The tour started off in the technology loge suites where you can wirelessly charge all of your devices. From there, Lucie went to the technology operations center on the field level.

“They are looking at every aspect in the building to make sure wireless is working and TVs are working,” Cannon said.

With this technology, 71,000 fans can live stream whatever they want at the same time to sites like Facebook live. There are 1,800 Wi-Fi hot spots and the amount of fiber they laid inside is incredible.

“We have over 4,000 miles of fiber in stadium,” Cannon said. “We deliver all content and keep up with demands of the future.”

The #mbstadium tour continues on the 200 concourse level Mercedes-Benz Stadium WSB-TV

Posted by Craig Lucie on Tuesday, August 15, 2017

CONCESSIONS

While on the tour, we got another look inside the stadium. One of the things that stuck our to everyone were the concession prices.

How does a $2 soda - with free refills - sound? And if you're a beer drinker, a 12-ounce domestic draft will only set you back $5.

As ESPN's Darren Rovell pointed out, the Falcons will have the lowest concession prices in all professional sports.

Just $2 for popcorn? Yes please!

Free refills on soda? Certainly!

The Falcons' first game at the new stadium will be a preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals on Aug. 26.

There will be one more preseason game, two college football games and an Atlanta United match before the Falcons' first regular season game against the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 17.