The Challenge
Sheffield United FC’s Head of IT initially approached One2Call to resolve a pressing networking issue. Their stadium required fibre uplinks and structured data cabling following the sudden cessation of service from their incumbent supplier. However, as we worked with them, it became apparent that we could also help them with other challenges across their IT, telecoms and connectivity.
Other challenges included:
- Separate telecom systems for the business centre and stadium, leading to inefficiencies and high costs.
- Use of a single ISP for the stadium’s main and backup internet connectivity, creating a potential single point of failure that could affect matchday revenue.
- Vendor-imposed restrictions on network visibility making troubleshooting difficult.
- Delays in receiving hardware and handsets from their telecom supplier.
- Premier League match day requirements for robust, high-availability network and IT support
The Solution
After conducting the necessary surveys we worked alongside Sheffield United’s in-house team to develop a strategy that would streamline their systems, improve resilience, and enhance overall efficiency.
Our approach included:
- Completing the fibre uplink installation and data cabling to restore network integrity at the stadium.
- Identifying that one of Sheffield United’s two telephone systems had sufficient licensing to consolidate both the stadium and business centre under a single, cost-effective 3CX solution with no break in service for users.
- Extending 3CX to the business centre, eliminating unnecessary per-handset fees, and configuring it to act as separate system where needed.
- Utilising our supply-chain influence to ensure prompt, usually next-day, delivery of essential hardware and handsets.
- Migrating their 3CX to a cloud-hosted, fully managed solution, allowing enhanced failover options as well as a single point of management and billing.
- Upgrading connectivity across all sites, including a dedicated primary connection for telecoms and a 1GBps service for the academy, expandable up to 10Gbps to allow for future expansion.
- Deploying a 1GB primary connection, scalable and burstable to 10Gbps, for the stadium, ensuring reliability and future-proofing.
- Managing multiple VLANs across the network to ensure security, efficiency, and quality of service.
- Providing match day IT support in compliance with Premier League requirements, ensuring the seamless operation of turnstiles, press office systems, electronic tills, and critical stadium infrastructure.
The Results
Through our expertise and consultative approach Sheffield United FC now has “Premier League” level IT, connectivity and telecoms infrastructure, leading to:
- A unified and cost-efficient 3CX phone system across the stadium, business centre, and academy, with an overall reduction in costs.
- Significant cost savings by eliminating per-handset fees and consolidating telecom services under a single provider.
- Improved network resilience with independent telecom connections and an upgraded 10GB bearer for future scalability.
- Enhanced match day experience, ensuring IT and network stability for fans, press, and club operations.
- Full visibility and management of network performance, allowing the IT team to proactively address issues.
- A trusted partnership, with One2Call helping the club to centrally manage the IT network across Sheffield United FC’s multiple sites.
During the busy Christmas period, our scalable network solution proved its value by effortlessly increasing bandwidth to 10GB to meet heightened demands.
From an initial networking challenge to becoming trusted experts to Sheffield United FC across IT networking, connectivity and telecoms, we have demonstrated both the value of our consultation and the depth of our expertise, helping to ensure seamless operations both on match days and beyond.
