How does the KC Royals’ new facial recognition entry system change games for fans?
A few thousand fans over the weekend got into Kauffman Stadium much quicker to see the Kansas City Royals sweep the Chicago White Sox, thanks to some new technology.
The Royals introduced “facial authentication technology” for people going to home games, which officially launches Monday for their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The team is the sixth in Major League Baseball to use the “Go Ahead” entry format this season. It was first used by the Philadelphia Phillies and Citizens Bank Park in 2023.
Though the goal is to speed up entry, Jason Sinnarajah, chief operating officer for the Royals, said times may be slow early on as people get used to it or if other issues arise, like what happened a press preview event Monday morning in which visitors were denied entry.
Karri Zaremba, senior vice president of ballpark experience and ticketing for MLB, said using the facial recognition technology won’t be mandatory for visitors. You have to be 18 or over to sign up. Only one person in a group needs to be enrolled, which makes it easier for families or large parties to enter.
From data Zaremba’s team has collected, fans get into stadiums 68 times faster using facial recognition technology than traditional entry lines. Stadiums have been able to get 2 1/2 times more people through the entry gates in the same amount of time, Zaremba said.
Here’s what else we learned by previewing the new way to enter Kauffman Stadium.
Why is facial recognition technology being implemented at Kauffman Stadium now?
The process of bringing the technology to Kauffman Stadium has been in the works for a couple of years, but Sinnarajah said this felt like the appropriate time.
They could’ve debuted it later in the season, but he said they wanted to launch it right after the MLB’s All-Star break. The Royals are in the middle of a nine-game homestand, and since attendance is up this season, Sinnarajah said it’s an advantage to have this quicker entry technology available now.
Are there any concerns with using facial recognition technology?
Elsewhere in the United States, facial recognition technology has been used to ban people from arenas. Lawyers who were involved in lawsuits against Madison Square Garden in New York found themselves unable to enter the venue for New York Knicks’ games or other events.
When MLB started to expand use of the technology earlier this year, some groups protested against it, ESPN reported. When used by law enforcement, some facial recognition systems have been found to be less accurate in identifying people of color.
Zaremba said images captured by the “Go Ahead” technology cannot be used for any other reason other than verifying a visitor’s entry. The image taken by the user in the app is discarded immediately and is only used to get people into the stadium faster.
“We don’t store any images of fans,” Zaremba said. “So as soon as that selfie is captured, it’s converted into an alphanumeric token and that image is discarded.”
Anyone who does not wish to use the facial recognition system can opt out.
When is the facial recognition technology active?
The facial recognition technology works like a regular ticket, which means it becomes active two hours before first pitch.
This became a small problem at a preview event Monday morning and caused some delays in getting the technology to work.
When journalists attending the event tried to enter the stadium by scanning their face, the screen would read “see attendant.” They tried this multiple times by walking up to the screen and received the same response on the screen
That’s because the demo tickets members received were for Monday’s game, which begins at 7:10 p.m. Since that was quite a few hours away, the tickets didn’t work, since the gates technically weren’t open for visitors.
New tickets were sent for an event scheduled at 11:30 a.m., and it worked. Attendants were able to walk through without any issues after around five minutes of Royals’ staff fixing the problem.
How does the technology work?
Ticketholders must have the MLB Ballpark app to access the facial recognition technology. The app is the same visitors must have to access their game tickets. When you open the app, a prompt asks if you’d like to enroll in “Go Ahead” entry.
If you select yes, you will have to take a selfie of yourself, which will be stored as a numerical token once it’s captured. The photo you take will be deleted immediately and not kept in the MLB’s database.
Only the person with the tickets needs to be enrolled for it to work with a group, Sinnarajah said. If you share your ticket with someone else, they will need to sign up on the app separately.
The facial recognition software is located at gates B and D, where Sinnarajah said two-thirds of the fanbase enter the facility. He said they’re looking at potentially implementing the technology at all gates at Kauffman Stadium in the future.
The program is completely voluntary, according to the MLB Ballpark app. You can unregister from the program at anytime by going to your profile, selecting the “MLB Go-Ahead ID” link and selecting “Delete MLB Go-Ahead ID.”
You are not required to sign up for the program. You can enter Kauffman Stadium through regular gates at all entrance points, including gates B and D.
What are fans saying about the facial recognition technology?
The Royals said they got positive reviews from fans who tested out the facial recognition technology during the weekend. Sinnarajah said staff members explained how the process worked and watched fans of all ages try the system. He heard from fans who were delighted at the process taking seconds.
“It was remarkably positive,” Sinnarajah said. “Everybody was super surprised because they didn’t know about it when they signed up.”
He said that regular ticket scanners are averaging around 10-12 scans per minute, and the new technology has the potential to work five or six times faster than that.
Greeters at the gates can see the name you have on the MLB Ballpark app on the screen behind the camera and can greet you personally as you enter the stadium. Zaremba said many fans enjoyed that aspect of the technology.
