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Can you resolve football rivalries with Raspberry Pi’s?

The San Siro is one of Europe’s most iconic sporting arenas and home to both of Milan’s football giants AC Milan and Internazionale.

Two fierce rivals sharing the same stadium certainly makes financial sense for the owners of the San Siro, with at least one fixture per week played on the famous turf during the Serie A season, but how do you truly make it feel like home to the supporters of both clubs? And how can you ensure that resources are shared where possible?

This was the exact challenge that was faced when planning a 1000m2 new megastore. How do you create the right atmosphere for two very different sets of supporters who dislike the other team? Add into this the complexity of one side being sponsored by Nike and the other by Adidas, two companies with almost as much rivalry as the football clubs.

Running two separate stores would require two workforces and a huge duplication of effort. It would also mean that the store would have to be closed during the other team’s fixture dates. 

Italian company Taloradio srl was set the task of solving this problem and found an innovative solution using Raspberry Pi’s from RS Components as part of a multi-sensory retail management system for audio, video, lighting and fragrance synchronisation.

This system, called VideoMOOD has enabled the San Siro Megastore to create a number of pre-set scenarios, which can be switched using a simple touchscreen interface.screencontrols_74922ef096e51be0be8f50751ce6106e37df7eda.jpg

Each scenario syncs the video screens and audio to customizable content, with a fully integrated home automation system also linking the lights and aromas to create micro thematic events. The use of Raspberry Pi’s ensures the smart management of monitors, with various video formats displayed across store areas and art walls.

The Scenarios

There are 3 pre-built scenarios that can be selected for the San Siro store dependent upon the event.                                 

The non-match day scenario is the store’s default setting and ensures that the store is split in half, with equal space.newstore-009_546e82e53c6079ff6892bf31d4c83bf7583edbd9.jpg

During this mode, the left side of the store is lit in red, displays AC Milan video content and contains their club merchandise. The opposite half of the store is lit in blue, displays Internazionale video content and contains their club merchandise.  

The central area remains in neutral San Siro branding to ensure that supporters of both clubs are able to visit side by side on non-match days along with tourists to purchase the full range available, whilst ensuring that each side of the store has its own identity and the brands do not mix.

The other two scenarios are built for each of the club’s to be used for their own home fixtures. These scenario’s change the entire store’s lighting into the club colours, all screens and displays to their own content and removes all traces of the other team. This enables them to re-merchandise the entire store for use by each of the teams for their own home matches providing them with the best chance to maximise their own match day turnover.

This technology also provides the opportunity for the shop to be tailored for any other special events, with fully customizable scenarios able to be built into the system.

I am a 32-year-old tech lover, self-confessed geek and football fanatic! When I am not playing with the latest gadget you will often find me watching my favourite TV shows including Game of Thrones, Young Sheldon and The Big Bang Theory. Feel free to follow me on Instagram @robbiedunion or Twitter @robbiedunion
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