Blending Creativity and Practicality: How the BBC and Ross Video Elevated the FA Cup Final Broadcast 

The FA Cup Final is one of the most iconic fixtures in the sporting calendar – a moment when storytelling, spectacle, and tradition come together on one of football’s biggest stages. But delivering a standout broadcast experience isn’t just about having the best tech. It’s about knowing what you want to achieve, understanding the creative limitations of the environment, and working with the right partners to bring it all together.

This year, BBC Sport set out to push the visuals further – without overwhelming the production or disrupting the day. The team began with a few simple but important questions: What can be done within the time and resources available? What tools could enhance the audience experience without adding friction to the workflow? And how could they create something bold and memorable that still felt true to the BBC Sport brand?

“It sounds a bit boring, but it’s about making it easier.” John Murphy, Design Director for BBC Sport, told us recently. “You can have great-looking visuals, but you’ve got to ask: how long does it take to deliver? Will it distract the production team from doing their jobs? For technology to really enhance the broadcast, the process needs to be quicker, simpler, and more cost-efficient.” 

To get all the insights in detail, watch the full panel discussion from the 2025 SVG Football Summit on demand here now.  

Balancing boldness with brand integrity  

With minimal setup time available at Wembley Stadium, BBC turned to Ross Video and its creative services team, Rocket Surgery, to help deploy a complete augmented reality system that integrated cleanly into the broadcast. The tools were faster to implement, the workflows were smoother, and everything came together in a way that made sense for live production.

“We had less time to set up, but the process of being able to do this was quicker,” John Murphy explained. “That’s why we gave it a go. It’s not just about the visual effect and looking great. It’s also the fact that we can do it in the timeframes that we think are achievable. It has to fit into the day and not take time away from the directors focusing on their programmes.”

Collaboration was key to making it all work. Ross Video’s team already had a clear understanding of BBC’s creative goals. Technologies like Voyager, Ross Video’s virtual graphics engine, worked in tandem with Lucid (its virtual control platform) and spidercam’s real-time tracking to produce clean, accurate 3D visuals. These elements were further enhanced with PIERO, Ross’s real-time sports analysis tool, allowing the team to embed match data into the graphics in ways that added genuine value to the storytelling.

The production also struck a careful balance between boldness and brand integrity. BBC Sport’s visual identity leans digital and minimal, so while there was room to stretch the look for a big event like the FA Cup Final, it had to be done with subtlety. As one BBC team member put it, they had to “bend a few guidelines” – just enough to inject a touch of Super Bowl-style spectacle without losing what makes the FA Cup unique.

Using technology to serve the story 

Beyond this one event, the project highlighted a broader trend in sports presentation: the influence of gaming culture. From the motion and scale of graphics to the growing expectations of interactivity, elements borrowed from the gaming world are increasingly shaping how sports content is consumed – especially by younger audiences. The BBC and Ross Video team weren’t trying to mimic a video game, but they understood the value of incorporating those visual cues to create something more immersive and engaging. 

“We’ve been working with gaming engines for both virtual studios and augmented reality for a few years now,” Murphy said. “It’s clear that it resonates with younger audiences – because what they’re seeing on screen feels like what they’re used to from gaming environments.” 

Ultimately, the technology only worked because it served the story. It was easy to deploy, intuitive to operate, and subtle enough to stay in the background. And by supporting – not distracting from – the match itself, the technology made a genuine impact.