New scoreboard, video displays coming to Evansville's Ford Center

EVANSVILLE — The Ford Center's plan for adding a new scoreboard to the arena in 2024 is underway.

Daktronics, a Brookings, South Dakota, business, announced in a news release Wednesday that the company had been selected to create 20 LED displays totaling more than 3,000 square feet for the Ford Center.

"The centerpiece of the project hangs from the middle of the venue and features a continuous main video display wrapping around the centerhung structure to appeal to every seat in the arena," the news release states.

“The Ford Center has always gone above and beyond expectations using our electronic signage to maximize the event and patron experience,” Scott Schoenike, executive director at VenuWorks/Ford Center, said in the release. “The new 360-degree scoreboard will give us even more flexibility to be creative and make every event even more special and personalized.”

The plan for major updates to the Ford Center was made known to the public last September, when the city announced plans to sell city streets as a part of a "creative financing" plan to help pay for an estimated $9 million in updates to the arena.

The 2024 city capital improvement budget for Ford Center included $3 million for a new score board and ribbon board, to be paid by bond.

According to the news release from Daktronics, the center-hung scoreboard has continuous video display with rounded corners measuring nearly 15 feet by 97 feet, and an upper ring display matching the main shape that measures approximately 2.5 feet by 97 feet.

"All three centerhung displays feature 5.9-millimeter pixel spacing for delivering crisp, clear imagery to graphics, stats, animations and sponsorship messages," the release states. "The main display is capable of variable content zoning allowing it to show one large image or to be divided into multiple zones of content."

According to the release, this means it can show things like live, and pre-recorded, video and instant replays.

Also included in the project:

• Four ribbon displays, each measuring around 2.5 feet high.
• Seven courtside scorers tables.
• Three double-sided displays on the basketball goal stanchions for advertising.