A chance trip to Levi's Stadium offered a glimpse of the future.
I had a free day while on a working trip to San Francisco this summer that happened to coincide with the 49ers' third preseason game and, as a longtime fan of the storied NFL team it was an opportunity I couldn't let pass me by.
Preseason NFL games are rarely anything to write home about, however, and this was no exception as the first string units of the Niners and the visiting San Diego Chargers barely stayed on the field until half-time of a game the hosts eventually won 21-7. To be honest I don't even remember who scored.
The real star of the day, however, was the 49ers' shiny new home, being shown off to the locals for just the second time.
I never made it to The Stick - Candlestick Park - before it was mothballed in January, but by all accounts it was an outdated relic of a stadium, hence the $1.3billion investment in the so-called 'Field of Jeans', located some 40 miles south of San Francisco in the town of Santa Clara.
Building the stadium that far outside the city meant a pig of a journey - I needed a taxi, train, light rail and bus to get within walking distance, but it made for an odd experience to make the journey alongside season ticket holders for whom the trip was also a novel addition to the gameday routine.
Once there it was instantly apparent that Levi's is in many ways a template for the future of sports arenas. Although the 'new car smell' will wear off at some point (if it hasn't already as the Niners come to the end of their season), San Francisco fans will continue to enjoy a most innovative home.
Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, it is the most technologically advanced stadium in the US, with 1,200 high-speed wi-fi points offering free internet access to every seat and it actually worked!
There are two enormous scoreboards, not on a par with the monstrosity that hangs over the Cowboys' field in Dallas, but plenty big enough, while there are also enough solar panels that it is claimed the entire stadium is energy neutral.
Best of all is the option to use a smartphone app to avail of in-seat delivery for food and drinks, with an estimated 10-15 minute wait for your beer to arrive at your seat.
Maybe now we have a solution to the half-empty Aviva Stadium that greets Irish teams at the start of the second half?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu4PdVS_NVc
