ITV Sport's Multi-Space Virtual Studio: A Headquarters for Every Sport
The Brief
The challenge was significant: the set had to look premium for flagship events, yet work equally well for smaller productions with tighter budgets and schedules. Following a competitive tender process, Lightwell and collaborator Toby Kalitowski of BK Design Projects were selected to realise the concept.
The Design Concept
The set was conceived as a multi-level sports headquarters - a hub that feels like a real, inhabitable building rather than a decorated backdrop. Viewers on its Six Nations debut saw what appears to be the second floor of a large space, overlooking an atrium open to an imaginary level below. That sense of architectural depth and scale was entirely intentional.
The design's distinctive coffered window detail draws from an unlikely source: Le Corbusier's Chapel of Notre-Dame du Haut at Ronchamp. Because it is a real building, referencing its architectural language kept the virtual space grounded in what is actually possible to construct. This was a detail that was refined and developed into an organising principle. Our architectural background drove much of this thinking - virtual spaces that feel real because they are designed to the logic and scale of real buildings.
Multiple Presenter Positions and Stages
The studio contains three distinct presenting positions within a single interior space, each designed for a different editorial purpose - giving directors and producers clear, structured choices rather than an open-ended virtual world to navigate.
The atrium space was also designed to incorporate augmented reality elements, developed in collaboration with Kim Teddy and Moov - carefully crafted to match the architectural details of the set and feel purposeful rather than decorative. One of these elements places oversized imagery of players and coaches within the atrium space.
Adapting for the Rugby World Cup
One of the set's most significant features is its adaptability. For ITV's coverage of the Rugby World Cup 2023, hosted in France, the design was meaningfully modified rather than simply rebranded. A full bay was removed from the exterior wall to open onto a new balcony presentation space overlooking a Parisian roofscape - a completely different spatial and editorial experience, built within the logic of the existing structure.
Technical Delivery
The studio is based at Timeline Television's Ealing Broadcast Centre and is powered by Brainstorm's InfinitySet, with rendering via Unreal Engine 4.27 and camera tracking by Mo-Sys StarTracker. Virtual integration was handled by Moov throughout. The set launched in February 2023 with the Six Nations and has since hosted La Liga, the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023, the UEFA Nations League, and the Rugby World Cup 2023.
The Result
A virtual studio that has proved its durability across two years and multiple major sports - flexible enough to serve every event in ITV Sport's portfolio while maintaining a consistent, premium identity. It demonstrates that a well-designed virtual environment, built on sound architectural principles, can be a long-term broadcast asset rather than a single-event production.
The set was reviewed by NewscastStudio on launch — read their coverage here.
Client
ITV Sport
Design
Toby Kalitowski
Jim Mann, Lightwell
Realtime Engine
Unreal Engine 4.27
Studio Integration
Moov
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