EGYPT: Ancient history and contemporary sports entertainment converged on one of the world’s most iconic landscapes as Glory in Giza transformed Egypt’s Great Pyramids into a spectacular stage for an international boxing showcase. At the heart of the event’s visual production was a Hippotizer Media Server workflow from Green Hippo that enabled an immersive multimedia experience across the vast Giza Plateau.

Selected to deliver the event’s complete technical production, HiLights Group was tasked with creating a visual environment that not only complemented the grandeur of the historic venue but also delivered a compelling experience for both the live audience and viewers watching worldwide.

For Ahmed Mohsen, Head of Video at HiLights Group, the creative vision was established from the outset. “The creative and technical brief was centered around a singular, monumental objective – to elevate the Great Pyramids of Giza not merely as a passive backdrop, but as the primary, living architectural protagonist of the entire spectacle.”

Rather than competing with the historic surroundings, the production was designed to integrate seamlessly with them. The Giza Plateau became a natural amphitheatre, with video, lighting and staging carefully orchestrated to enhance the site’s monumental architecture while delivering the energy expected from a major sporting event.

To realise this vision, Hippotizer Media Servers were integrated with a video processor to drive an extensive network of Visiotek PH3.9 outdoor LED displays spanning hundreds of square metres throughout the venue. The platform managed complex multi-screen playback across the expansive site while maintaining precise synchronisation between live camera feeds, graphics and programmed show cues.

Content created by the Arena Video team was combined with live IMAG feeds captured directly through Hippotizer, allowing pre-produced visual elements and live footage to be presented as a unified visual experience.

According to Mohsen, one of the key strengths of the Hippotizer ecosystem was its ability to manage the venue’s extensive display infrastructure from a single control environment. ZooKeeper enabled operators to monitor and control both primary and backup media servers centrally, while Mix Presets provided instant recall of complete visual states during the fast-moving production. Pin Bridge technology further synchronised the media servers with the lighting and show control systems, ensuring all production elements operated cohesively.

“A true standout moment for the video department was the execution of the high-energy, theatrical fighter walkouts,” said Mohsen. “Video content was distributed across vertical LED screens, large-scale display walls and LED floor surfaces, creating distinct visual identities for each athlete as they approached the ring.”

Leveraging Hippotizer’s multi-controller and multi-mix architecture, the production team programmed individual media timelines, effects and output mappings across multiple display surfaces, all triggered simultaneously from a single cue. Through Pin Bridge integration, video, lighting and audio remained precisely synchronised, creating dramatic sequences that resonated equally with spectators on-site and audiences watching via the global broadcast.

The evening culminated in the headline bout between unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk and kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven, with Usyk emerging victorious. Against the timeless backdrop of the Great Pyramids, the production demonstrated how advanced media server technology can seamlessly unite architecture, storytelling and live entertainment on an extraordinary scale.