How Texas Athletics Delivered Faster, Smoother Game Day Entry for 1.3 Million Fans with NFC

The Challenge: Game Day Bottlenecks

It's game day at DKR Memorial Stadium or the Moody Center. The energy is electric - as any Texas Athletics event is. Instead of sapping that anticipation and excitement, how do they keep the momentum and energy building during entry? 

Like many major programs managing massive crowds, they faced the familiar challenges of optimizing gate flow and coordinating ticketing across multiple channels. Third-party brokers brought variety to the ticketing landscape but also created inconsistencies in the fan experience, while traditional QR codes occasionally added friction with their need for precise alignment and brightness. Behind the scenes, security concerns around fraudulent tickets added another layer of complexity to manage.

The question wasn't just about security—it was about creating an entry process that matched the caliber of their athletics program. How could they give 1.3 million annual attendees the smooth, professional experience they deserved while also solving operational challenges behind the scenes?

The Leap: A Strategic Shift to Tap-and-Go Confidence

Texas Athletics saw an opportunity to lead, not follow. In 2024, they embraced NFC technology—the same intuitive "tap-and-go" experience fans already loved with contactless payments like Apple Pay. They set their plan. Instead of a campus-wide rollout, they started with the baseball season, giving both staff and fans time to adapt before football's massive crowds arrived.

Their approach was thoughtfully human-centered. They communicated early and often, updated fan guides with clear visuals, and made clever operational tweaks like covering QR code logos on gate scanners to encourage tapping. They understood that great technology is only as good as its adoption, so they invested in making the transition feel natural.

As Christine Scott-Laakso, Associate Director, Ticket Operations, Systems and Finance, put it, moving from QR to NFC felt less like a giant leap and more like just "the next step in a more efficient process."

The Results: Faster Entry, Better Data

With 1.3 million fans attending Texas Athletics events annually, even modest improvements create significant impact.

Gate Operations: 

• Scan accuracy: 97% (up from 95%) ~ 13,000 fewer scanning errors per year

• On-time scanning: 88% (up from 85%) ~ 39,000 more fans through gates on schedule

• Fraud virtually eliminated with secure NFC technology

Fan Experience: 

• Digital pass usage: 96% (up from 88%) ~ 104,000 more fans went paperless

• Attendance rate: 89% (up from 86%) ~ Improved turnout despite technology change

• Fan satisfaction: 4.64/5 — High ratings maintained across 1.3 million interactions

Secure Transfers: 

• Official transfers: 47% (up from 40%) ~ 91,000 more verified transactions

• New prospect accounts created through secure transfer process

• Fraudulent sharing eliminated while legitimate sharing improved

These transfers create new accounts for us that are all prospects, and that's pretty important. It's been eye-opening."

– Corbin Hunt, Associate Athletics Director, Ticket Sales, Services and Operations

The Playbook: Your Path to Game Day Excellence

Texas Athletics proves that NFC adoption isn't just manageable—it's transformational. Their experience managing 1.3 million annual fan interactions with 4.6/5 satisfaction scores shows that better technology actually enhances the fan experience rather than complicating it.

The key insights for any athletic program: start strategically with smaller events, communicate proactively with your community, and focus on the fan experience benefits. When your attendees can tap and go in seconds instead of fumbling with QR codes, everyone wins – fans get to their seats faster, staff can focus on hospitality instead of troubleshooting, and your program gains valuable data on who's actually in the stands.

Texas Athletics didn't just solve operational challenges; they raised their entire game day standard across all of their athletic events. For any program ready to deliver that same level of excellence, their playbook shows the way forward.