Announcement:
The North and South stands will boast new electronic display boards which have been installed since the Dnipro match last Thursday.
Measuring 18 metres x 1.6 metres and hanging from the roof behind each goal, they will show the current score, number of minutes gone and the current time in 26,000 distinctive Boro-themed red and white LED bulbs.
The innovation is the latest development in Boro’s ongoing celebrations and stadium improvements marking the 10 anniversary of the club’s move to the Riverside Stadium.
Boro had already erected the Ayresome Park gates, launched the Boro Brick Road, erected legends banners inside and outside the stadium, names the kiosks and bars after club legends and installed new flat screen televisions in the concourses.
The North Stand board is sponsored by Errea and Carlsberg, while the display in the South Stand is sponsored by Ironopolis Engineering Company and Bakers Tailoring.
Boro’s Operations Manager Terry Tasker said: “We hope the display boards will help to improve the service we provide to fans. It is something the club has been looking at for some time.”
The screens were designed by Blackpool-based company Scanlite, who have also built screens for other football clubs including Liverpool and Celtic.
Up to 20 characters can be displayed on two lines of 450mm LEDs, which means the screens can also show live comments, as well as personal notices and safety information.
Scanlite communications consultant Tony Harrison said: “This is the very latest LED technology which means that fans can read the score, time and messages from every distance and angle in the stadium.
“The latest technology also means the scoreboard is energy-efficient – LED bulbs are low-maintenance and use a small amount of power.