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The system, designed and built by critical communications company Kordia, is known as a Distributed Antenna System (DAS). This is how even at sold-out events with tens of thousands of people, fans can use their phones normally – uploading social media photos of the event, livestreaming and calling friends and family.
What is a Distributed Antenna System (DAS)?
A DAS brings mobile coverage across a venue by placing antennas throughout the building and linking them back to a central signal source. There are 250 antennas around One New Zealand Stadium, with larger ones above the seating bowl – to grant the fans seamless in-stadium connectivity.
Large buildings like stadiums have unique connectivity challenges for mobile networks. 5G signals in particular struggle to penetrate through materials such as reinforced concrete, which means innovation solutions are required.
When tested across three consecutive match days on the opening weekend, the DAS in-stadium mobile connectivity stayed stable under heavy demand – as reported by One New Zealand – delivering more than 3.4TB of data across 4G and 5G.
It's a proven technology. Kordia has designed, built, or assisted in the implementation of similar solutions for premier venues in other parts of New Zealand too, such as the New Zealand International Convention Centre, the IKEA store, ANZ Centre and PwC Tower at Commercial Bay in Auckland.
This matters because large structures — particularly reinforced concrete — can weaken mobile signals, and big events create sudden spikes when thousands of people post, stream and message at once. This system is designed to help distribute that demand more efficiently, ensuring reliable connectivity indoors, even in high-demand environments.
Another benefit is that the stadium uses shared in-building mobile infrastructure, with these antennas enabling One New Zealand, alongside Spark, and 2degrees to deliver strong performance without unnecessary duplication of equipment — a more efficient way to keep fans connected.
An important piece of tech for every corner of the stadium
Good mobile connectivity can also support other in-stadium technologies such as smart devices, sensors, automation, and on-field and back-of-house staff communications – all crucial for the overall event experience.
It means even seemingly minor things, like EFTPOS machines at stadium food vendors, work without a hitch. Because who wants to watch a rugby match hungry or without a cold drink in hand!
The DAS has been designed to enable the use of these technologies for now and into the future, giving the stadium operator the benefit of having a range of technology options to support these services.
Supporting Christchurch’s connectivity resilience
The DAS at One New Zealand Stadium has been built for Christchurch’s new world-class venue – but it also helps support the network operators manage their cell tower performance around the stadium.
When tens of thousands of people converge in one location at the same time and all connect to nearby cell towers, this can impact mobile coverage in the vicinity, affecting people who aren’t even at the event.
By balancing the load on the network, the DAS ensures the people of Christchurch – both in and outside the stadium – all experience the benefits of this technology at the city’s cutting-edge venue, while helping to ensure that local households, businesses, and emergency services in the vicinity can continue to rely on good mobile service.
It's a vital piece of infrastructure supporting connectivity from day one, and the results confirm the in-stadium connectivity for One New Zealand Stadium is ready to support major national and international events with confidence.
Planning your next visit? Check out the One New Zealand Stadium line-up: https://onenewzealandstadium.co.nz/whats-on