Orange TowerCo subsidiary TOTEM has deployed a 5G network at the Orange Vélodrome stadium, in Marseille, France.

The stadium, which is home to French football club Olympique de Marseille, will be able to provide 5G services to match goers.

TOTEM has deployed a DAS (Distributed Antenna System) infrastructure with next-generation antennas designed specifically for venues with high mobile phone usage to provide consistent service at the stadium.

Although Orange sponsor the stadium, other French operators Bouygues Télécom, Free Mobile, and SFR, have connected their equipment to the antenna infrastructure deployed by TOTEM, meaning all four can offer 5G services at the ground.

"Connecting an indoor environment to the latest generation of 5G, which can be used by almost 68,000 people at the same time, is a real technical challenge," explained TOTEM France CEO, Thierry Papin.

"To connect the Orange Vélodrome, TOTEM has built the first network of its kind in France, capable of meeting the connectivity needs of the biggest sports events. The equipment deployed by TOTEM is the same successfully deployed solution at major competitions in the US and will make the Orange Vélodrome the first stadium in France to have such advanced 5G connectivity."

According to TOTEM, its network of pooled antennas means that all operators can provide their mobile services simultaneously while ensuring the stadium has a single, neutral point of contact.

The DAS infrastructure is also critical to optimizing the equipment footprint and allows operators to consume less energy, says the TowerCo.