Ever wondered what powers the seamless game-day experience at your favorite NFL stadium? Cisco just tripled its club and stadium partnerships, bringing advanced AI-ready networking and cybersecurity to more teams. Discover how their tech is future-proofing the league and enhancing every play. Are you ready for the ultimate connected fan experience?
Cisco has significantly bolstered its presence within the National Football League, tripling its partnerships with clubs and stadiums ahead of the 2025-2026 season, solidifying its role as a critical provider of cutting-edge networking and cybersecurity solutions across the league.
This strategic expansion welcomes six new NFL franchises and their venues into Cisco’s growing portfolio: the Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Chicago Bears, Las Vegas Raiders, and Miami Dolphins. These additions complement existing collaborations with the New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers, extending Cisco’s reach and influence in securing and connecting the NFL ecosystem.
At the core of these widespread sports partnerships is Cisco’s unified technology platform, heralded for its strength and reliability. This robust infrastructure is designed to be AI-ready, effectively future-proofing league and club workplaces while ensuring unparalleled digital resilience across the entire operational framework. Rob McQueen, Vice President of Global Sponsorships at Cisco, highlighted this growth, stating that the platform underpins their rapidly expanding club and stadium collaborations.
While each NFL club and stadium partnership is uniquely tailored, they all leverage Cisco’s comprehensive suite of advanced NFL technology. Whether it’s deploying secure networking infrastructure, implementing high-density Wi-Fi 7 for superior connectivity, or utilizing the Cisco Hybrid Mesh Firewall, these solutions are meticulously crafted to power scalable, future-ready fan experiences and safeguard critical club and stadium operations.
The value of Cisco’s contribution is echoed by league officials. Aaron Amendolia, Deputy CIO at the NFL, affirmed the league’s five-season reliance on Cisco as an official partner for delivering world-class networking and cybersecurity solutions. He expressed satisfaction at the increasing number of teams and venues embracing Cisco’s expertise to enhance their operations, stadiums, and the overall fan journey.
The impact of these technology integrations is tangible at the individual venue level. Eric Sudol, Chief Revenue Officer, Tepper Sports & Entertainment, emphasized the exciting step forward for Bank of America Stadium through its partnership with Cisco. He noted that Cisco’s powerful and secure networking solutions are instrumental in elevating everything from game-day operations to the sophisticated digital experiences enjoyed by fans, ensuring seamless connectivity and reliability at every touchpoint.
Beyond individual venues, Cisco and the NFL collaborate at a league-wide scale to deploy a comprehensive networking and cybersecurity playbook. This ensures that major global events, including the Super Bowl, NFL International Series, and the NFL Draft, operate securely against various disruptions, from cyberattacks and outages to technical failures. Cisco’s solutions facilitate the analysis of massive data volumes, enabling the NFL to respond to threats in real-time and protect user data effectively.
Furthermore, Cisco’s technology forms the backbone of critical NFL operations, with every stadium’s replay control room built upon its infrastructure. These crucial control rooms are seamlessly connected to the Art McNally Gameday Central in New York via Cisco’s advanced network, underscoring the pervasive and essential role of Cisco enterprise networking in maintaining the integrity and smooth functioning of professional football.
