As football becomes more and more driven by business, and the leading clubs look to maximise their income, many are building new state-of-the-art stadiums that rely on the latest technology to make the matchday experience as good for fans as possible.

One of the pioneers was Manchester City, who moved in 2003 from the ageing Maine Road ground into the 48,000-seat stadium originally built for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The stadium was designed as a multi-sport venue without turnstiles – historically critical to crowd control at football grounds. As a result, when City moved in, the stadium became paperless, with fans issued smartcard-based tickets.

The smartcards use radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to communicate via a WiFi network with the club’s ticketing systems.

Liverpool FC has been another pioneer – IT manager Ken Webster says the club expects to have 90 per cent of its Anfield stadium using smartcard access next season.

By the time Liverpool moves to its new stadium, planned for 2009, it plans to have stopped using traditional paper-based tickets altogether.

And Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, completed last year, is one of the most technology-enabled grounds in the country. Membership cards double as contactless payment cards for buying refreshments and merchandise, and the London club hopes to be the first cashless stadium in the next couple of years.

Click here to listen to a podcast interview with Liverpool FC IT manager Ken Webster