The ancient wonders of Egypt met modern sports entertainment when Glory in Giza transformed the Great Pyramids into the backdrop for one of the year’s most anticipated boxing events. Powered by Hippotizer media servers, the production brought a cinematic creative vision to life on a global stage.
Tasked with delivering the event’s full technical production, HiLights Group created an immersive visual experience that matched the scale and significance of the venue while serving both the live audience and global broadcast viewers.
Ahmed Mohsen, head of video at HiLights Group, commented: “The creative and technical brief was centred 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.”
The production team designed the show to frame and enhance the setting. The Giza Plateau became a natural amphitheatre, with video, lighting, and staging integrated into the landscape.
The Hippotizer media servers worked with a video processor to drive a network of high-resolution LED displays comprising hundreds of square metres of Visiotek PH3.9 outdoor screens positioned throughout the venue.
The Hippotizer platform enabled the team to manage complex multi-screen playback across the sprawling site while maintaining precise synchronisation between live feeds, graphics, and show cues. Content created by the Arena video team was combined with live camera feeds captured directly through Hippotizer, providing a seamless blend of IMAG and pre-produced visual content.
According to Mohsen, one of the greatest advantages of the Hippotizer workflow was the ability to control the venue’s extensive display network through a unified system. Using ZooKeeper, the team monitored and controlled all primary and backup servers from a central location, while Mix Presets allowed operators to instantly recall entire visual states during the live production. Pin Bridge technology also enabled synchronisation between the media servers, lighting systems, and show control infrastructure.
“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 team programmed separate media timelines, effects, and output mappings across multiple display surfaces, all triggered simultaneously from a single cue. Integration via Pin Bridge ensured video, lighting, and audio operated in perfect harmony, creating dramatic moments that resonated with both the live audience and viewers watching around the world.
The event featured unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk facing kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven, with Usyk emerging victorious.