These 9 Stadiums Are Already Using Facial Recognition at Games

In late 2021, the New York Mets made history by becoming the first MLB team to officially implement a facial recognition ticketing system through a program called Mets Entry Express. The struggling baseball team part partnered with a firm called Wicket to in an effort to speed up wait times at line. Mets visitors can opt to upload a photo of their face prior to the game which is then scanned at entry gates. If the system recognizes the visitor as being enrolled in the system, they can pass through without ever looking for their ticket.

Multiple privacy groups launched a petition last year demanding the Mets abandon the ticketing system over concerns entities could store biometric data, making it vulnerable to hackers.

Clear may be best known for pitching its facial recognition services to travelers at airports, but the company has also spent years making inroads at sports stadiums. In 2019, Clear partnered with the Cleveland Guardians to grant ballpark visitors expedited entry in exchange for their biometrics information.

The Guardians aren’t the only Cleveland team experimenting with biometrics. Fans watching a football game at the Cleveland Browns stadium now have the option to sign up for “Express Access,” which links a buyer’s Ticketmaster account with a selfie. Ticket holders can then walk through dedicated Express Access lines a the stadium where a camera scans their face. On its website, the Browns claim this frictionless process makes entering the stadium four times faster.

Last year, Pechanga Arena, the home stadium for San Diego’s soccer and hockey teams, partnered with a firm called PopID to implement facial recognition-based ticketing. Like others on the list, the facial recognition ticketing option provided by PopID lets visitors speed through lines by removing the need to pull out a physical ticket or swipe through a phone for a barcode. PopID has aspirations to extend its face-based authentication methods for in-stadium payments as well, so attendees can one day rely on their face to purchase drinks and food.

Security personnel monitoring the Atlanta Falcons football stadium will soon have a new, four-legged, facial recognition-equipped companion roaming by their sides. Starting this season, security at Mercedes-Benz stadium will deploy a dog-like robot designed by Boston Dynamics and controlled by a company called Asylon to monitor the stadium late at night, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The robo-dog’s name is “Benzie.”

Human operators control Bezie from a remote location. The robot dog reportedly operates in 30-minute shifts and spends the remained of its “dog house” charging. Human security staff at the stadium told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution they’ve come to Benzie as a mascot of sorts

“I know it sounds weird, but I think the dog has a personality,” stadium director of physical security and parking Eri cYoung said. “We show the dog off around our stadium. Some people’s reaction is to stop, some kids take off running, but everyone asks questions,

Lower.com Field, the home stadium for the Columbus Crew professional soccer team, has been experimenting with “Express Entry” for facial recognition ticketing. Visitors interested in using Express Entry have to link their Ticketmaster account and then share a selfie. That selfie is then used to verify attendees’ dedicated facial recognition entry locations.

Facial recognition verification at stadiums isn’t just limited to fans. In New Orleans, athletes, staff, and coaches on the Saints football team have been using a biometric authenticator provided by AnyVision for two years to gain entry into training facilities. Saints staff initially turned to the technology as a contactless entry method in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The verification method, however, has persisted even as the immediate threat from the virus has subsided.

Similar to the Cleveland Guardians, fans of Los Angeles FC Soccer Team can also use biometrics tied to a Clear account to speed their way through security checks. When fans approach a turnstile at the stadium, a camera reportedly snaps their photo and either grants them entry or places a red frame around their face on the security screen if they aren’t recognized.

The Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California stands out as one of the earlier facial recognition adopters. The stadium’s Chief Operating Officer told Pasadena Now that the facility began using facial recognition at metal detectors around 2017 to keep tabs on VIPs, credentialed personnel, or even a potentially dangerous stalker.

“If we have an artist or an athlete or an event and they say, I have some stalkers, and I have some restraining orders on some individuals that are very highly likely going to be attending the event and potentially create a concerning situation, we upload those individuals photos if we have a photo of them in our software, and then our cameras communicate to us, if, and or when that individual passes by one of our cameras,” George Cunningham, the stadium Chief Operating Officer said in an interview with Pasadena Now.