Better Connected in McKale

The 14,000+ fans who crowd McKale Memorial Center for Wildcat Basketball, Volleyball, and Gymnastics can now find faster connections for their cell phones and other mobile devices. Arizona Athletics has added a cellular Distributed Antenna System (DAS) in McKale and added a new WiFi network to provide more wireless coverage.

Matt George, Arizona Athletics’ assistant athletic director for video and information technology, said, “Fan connectivity is a key goal for us. We’ve been able to get the best possible coverage for our fans by dedicating Athletics funds to WiFi improvements and partnering for cellular coverage.”

The installation and management of the DAS was carried out by Boingo, who contracts with various carriers interested in antenna access. Verizon and AT&T are using the 140 new antennas throughout the facility for their customers. Boingo previously installed DAS hardware in Arizona Stadium for Arizona Football fans and other stadium visitors.

Meanwhile, Athletics contracted with AmpThink to increase WiFi coverage in McKale Memorial Center. They added 82 access points to the catwalk of McKale Center, with 164 antennas. Fans in the arena looking for wireless will notice the new #McKaleCenterWiFi network available to visitors.

UITS Network Operations coordinated with AmpThink and Athletics on controller installation and network configuration, as part of the ongoing partnership between UITS and Athletics to improve the visitor experience.

With these new cellular and WiFi improvements, fans in McKale will be calling, tweeting, posting, and streaming their Arizona Wildcat experience faster than ever.