EE holds world's first 5G AR Foosball tournament

29 April 2021

Peter Crouch led his team to victory in the world's first 5G augmented reality Foosball tournament.

Gareth Southgate and Peter Crouch

Taking place live from Wembley - and powered by mobile network EE - the mobile game used its network capabilities to transform the iconic turf into a real-time AR foosball table.

The games saw Team Yellow's Peter Crouch and Joe Cole win their respective games against Team Aqua's Gareth Southgate and Fara Williams, with the two five-person teams battling it out.

In the end, Team Yellow were crowned the winners, but their rival was delighted with the unusual experience.

The England manager commented: "It is always great to be at Wembley, although I have to say it was a totally different experience to what I am used to with the team.

"Being a part of EE's world's first 5G AR Foosball Tournament and seeing old friends has been brilliant.

"I can't wait to have fans back in the stadium, and for the ones lucky enough to visit Wembley, I am sure the 5G capabilities of EE's network will help keep them entertained and connected around the matches."

Wembley’s pitch was overlayed with a new gamified AR version of the field, which let players move the AR rows of foosball players by sliding their fingers on the smartphone screen.

As with a traditional game of foosball, the aim was to score goals, but gameplay ‘modifiers’ were introduced to kick the game up a notch, with unexpected elements such as bringing up walls inside the goals, freezing rows of players and duplicating the ball.

The exclusive AR experience will be tested in the EE hospitality boxes at Wembley Stadium, for EE guests to enjoy.

Sam Kemp - Products and Devices Technology Director at EE - added: “It’s great to be back at Wembley, once again showing what our award-winning network is made of.

"It’s Wembley like you’ve never played it before – just ask Gareth! Through the power of technology, we’ve transformed the turf into an immersive experience that demonstrates the power of 5G, dusting off our boots to show how our network can be used to create next-level experiences for our customers.

"When fans step back into Wembley, our network will be ready for the moments that matter, whether you are video calling a mate at half-time, checking rival scores during a big game, or posting pictures of momentous match moments. Game on!”