COVENTRY City will launch a new audio description commentary service on home matchdays at the Coventry Building Society Arena next season.
The service, provided by Alan March Sport Ltd, is available from the start of the 2024/25 campaign. The service is free to use for blind and visually impaired supporters and is available to both Sky Blues and away supporters on home matchdays.
A team of trained audio describers will keep up with play to the second to ensure listeners know exactly where the ball is and what is happening on the pitch – a different style and level of description to what supporters might hear on radio stations.
Coventry City’s executive chairman and owner, Doug King, said: “There is nothing better than the live buzz of football and experiencing the energy of the stadium and the supporters. This new service opens that door for those who previously were unable to enjoy that properly and I am very happy we are able to offer it from the start of the new season.”
Alan March Sport are world leaders in training and delivering audio description, having first started the service in 2007. In the UK they provide audio description commentators for 15 men’s and two women’s teams, while they also trained all the commentators for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
The club will confirm the process to use the equipment closer to the start of the season with fans able to collect receivers and listen to the commentary from anywhere in the stadium.
Listeners will also hear every pass, tackle, shot, save and goal as they happen, transforming the matchday experience for blind and visually impaired supporters.
