Court Projection Mapping for Basketball Courts and Ice Rinks

Before tip-off or puck drop, the biggest blank surface in the building is the one the players are about to use. With the house lights down, a court or a sheet of ice can become part of the pregame show: team colors running end to end, a logo building at center court, or a line of light tracing the boundary.

Projection can transform walls, floors and even entire buildings at sports events. But the playing surface is where every fan is already looking. If you are planning a pre-game show, tell us about the venue and the surface.

To a projector, a court or rink is a floor like any other, provided the surface is stable and within the projector's range. We can project onto almost any non-transparent surface, including floors, as long as the conditions support a clear image.

Light is the deciding factor. Too much ambient light or a highly reflective surface can wash out the image, so we assess the room lighting and surface color before determining the required projector brightness.

Placement comes next. A space with people moving in every direction affects how bright the image needs to be, how shadows are managed and where equipment can go. Specialty optics can help reduce shadow risks and keep hardware out of the audience footprint.

• Survey and mapping. We measure every surface, note ambient light conditions and map the geometry, then align the projection and calibrate until the image sits exactly where it should.
• Blending across the surface. Where several projectors share the surface, a graduated dimming curve in each overlap keeps brightness even, and we calibrate white point, color balance and gamma so the units match.
• Content for the team. We match the team's colors, typography and motion style, and we design for the specific surface.
• Stats and crowd moments. Projection can display player stats, highlight key plays or carry custom messages for the crowd.
• Sound and light in sync. The visuals are synchronized with the audio system and any stage lighting.
• Test runs. We recommend a test run at least a week before the event to confirm alignment and brightness.

Basketball courts are watched from every side, so logos and text need to read from more than one stand.

Ice rinks bring their own lighting and surface color, which is exactly what the survey checks before the projector spec is set.

Overhead light matters on both. Whatever the surface, we avoid placing the projection near direct sunlight or bright overhead lights.

Shows across concourses, plazas and fan zones are covered on our stadium and arena page, and interactive floors for lobbies and dance floors on our floor projection page.

These are the closest published projects to a court show: a court on a building, an interactive floor and a ceiling-mounted array.

• Nike Air Jordan at the 2023 NBA All-Star Game: Building-scale projection turned the facade of the Radisson Hotel outside the Vivint Arena into a dynamic court, with an image over 40,000 sq ft.
• Wild Child Lumens Gallery: Four projectors and three motion-sensing cameras created reactive visuals, including a magical terrarium where footsteps sprouted plants, in a gallery that ran for four months in 2019.
• DREAMBOX360: Eight ceiling-mounted Optoma 4K projectors are calibrated for seamless, shadowless 360-degree projections.

Tell us the venue, whether it is a court or a rink, the event date and what the show should say about the team. We will come back with how we would map the surface and light it. For the wider range of surfaces we map, see our projection mapping services, or contact our team to start.