Stadium Signage: Afterpay Arena Adds Large-Scale Transparent LED In Sydney

Afterpay Arena in Sydney has completed a venue-wide digital signage upgrade featuring what project partners describe as Australia’s largest transparent LED installation alongside new COB ribbon LED displays.

Delivered by Outsource Resource under the direction of venue signage consultant Beyond Media, the installation includes three transparent LED displays suspended above the Grand Foyer. Together, the displays span 84 square meters (904 square feet) and are designed to maintain sightlines while creating a digital focal point visible through the arena’s glass façade.

Rather than mounting directly to the building, the displays are suspended from a purpose-built aluminum truss, allowing visitors to see through the screens into the venue beyond.

Three transparent LED displays suspended above Afterpay Arena's Grand Foyer serve as the centerpiece of the venue's digital signage transformation (Image: Outsource Resource) — Visitors entering Afterpay Arena are greeted by three large transparent LED displays suspended above the Grand Foyer (Image: Outsource Resource)

Transparent LED moves beyond digital signage

According to Wayne Randerson, Director of Innovation & Partnerships at Outsource Resource, projects such as Afterpay Arena illustrate how transparent LED is evolving beyond traditional display applications.

“Clients are increasingly looking for technology that integrates into a building rather than sitting on top of it,” Randerson says. “Transparent LED delivers that balance of architectural integration, visual impact and lightweight design.”

He noted that the technology is well suited to venue foyers, retail storefronts, airports, transport hubs and corporate lobbies where organizations want to introduce digital communications without sacrificing openness or natural light. At approximately six kilograms per square meter, transparent LED is also lighter than conventional LED systems, making installations possible in locations where structural loading has traditionally been a constraint.

The project also introduced P1.5 COB ribbon LED displays throughout the Grand Foyer and Secondary Entry, including a 28.2-meter (93-foot) main display and additional ribbon sections integrated into existing mezzanine railing using custom framing.

Custom-mounted COB ribbon LED displays bring digital wayfinding to Afterpay Arena's Grand Foyer (Image: Outsource Resource) — Custom-mounted COB ribbon LED displays bring digital wayfinding to Afterpay Arena’s Grand Foyer (Image: Outsource Resource)

Michael Russo, Director of Sales & Operations at Outsource Resource, says successful transparent LED projects depend as much on planning as on the display technology itself. While lighter-weight displays create greater installation flexibility, structural engineering, maintenance access and content design all need to be considered from the outset to achieve the intended architectural effect.