Asbjoern Andersen


With the 2018 football/soccer World Cup beginning today - and with 3.2 billion people (!) tuning in for the last one - let's explore the talent, effort and creativity that goes into making sports sound great.

For starters, two classics from Vox and 99% Invisible give you the story on why sports sound better in the living room, and on how sports sound is designed.

You'll also get the inside-story behind the sound for legendary game franchises such as FIFA and Madden NFL, the science behind stadium sound, the sound of tennis, basketball, boxing, hockey, skiing, UFC and American Football + an interview with the Patrick Baltzell, responsible for the sound of the past 19 Super Bowls. And finally, discover the most popular sound effects libraries when it comes to sports.


Please share:
Why sports sound better in the living room:

 
“We don’t often think about audio when we watch sports on TV, but it’s a huge part of the experience. We spoke with several A1 audio engineers who mix the sounds of sports to learn more about what it takes to capture the crack of the bat and the swish of the net.

From the cadence of the quarterback to the sounds of skates on ice, audio mixers are tasked with getting microphones close enough to the action to gather the sounds but still out of the way of the players and the fans.

Once the microphones are set up, they handle the stressful task of live mixing all the audio for the broadcast, so that we can hear the announcers and the sounds of the game, despite thousands of screaming fans and the PA system blaring music.

In the end, if they do the job right, you’ll forget they exist.”

Watch the video:



Why sports sound better in your living room


99% invisible: The sound of sports:

 

“The experience of “live” events can be highly produced, very different from the experience of being there. Is this enhanced sound so very different from that of a film or a video game? We meet a Hollywood sound effects specialist and a video game sound designer to find out what they do to create a sense of authenticity and excitement. Are they raising our expectations of how “real” sport should sound?”

Hear the podcast:


Bonus videos – NFL recording, football reactions, bare-knuckle boxing + the sounds of Wimbledon recreated:

 

Recording the sounds for Madden NFL 17:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUzixas2KG0
Go behind the scenes as the Solid Audioworks team shares the sound story behind Madden NFL 17 (from the Madden NFL 18 Longshot sound story)
 


 

What it sounds like when Brazil scores in the World Cup:

Sports aren’t just loud in the stadium. Here’s what it sounded like when Claus Wahlers captured the neighborhood reactions to a football/soccer game between Brazil and Croatia in Moema, São Paulo:



This is how my neighborhood sounds when Brazil scores in the World Cup


 


 

Designing the sounds of bare-knuckle boxing:

Need the sound of an UFC-style bare-knuckle boxing fight? This layer-by-layer feature on the punch sounds from Fight Club might give you some sonic inspiration:



Punch sound design from Fight Club explained by Ren Klyce


 


 

Recreating the sounds of Wimbledon – with Lou Brown and Rick Blything:

What does Wimbledon sound like? For this great initiative, Foley artist Louise Brown and sound designer Rick Blything worked with a group of young people from Wandsworth Vision Support Service to recreate the sounds of Wimbledon:
https://vimeo.com/132304781

Popular sports sound effects libraries:

 

  • Want the sound of soccer (or football, if you like)? This library delivers a wide range of soccer sounds, including various kicks and ball impact sounds.

    It also packs keep-up, knee, chest and header sounds + ball impacts on various surfaces / items. And finally, soccer boot footsteps, keeper sounds and ref whistles are also included.

  • Small crowd sound effect libraries can be hard to find – but here's the solution: The Small Crowds Outdoors SFX library gets you crowds samples from 1 to 15 people. 649 sounds are included in three mic placements each (MS near, MS far, ORTF rear), for a total of 1947 sounds.

    Includes crowd reactions with everything from painful groans, excited cheering, roaring, short words, booing, applauding, whistling, panic screams, battle shouts, battlefield attack calls, monster grunts, ritualistic incantations and so much more.

  • Environments & Ambiences The Football Match Play Track 14+ sounds included, 13 mins total $30

    Get the real sounds of a UK football / soccer match – including crowd reactions covering everything from applause, cheering, booing, chanting, groans, oohs!, misses, goals and more. If you're after real stadium crowd reactions, this one delivers.

  • Environments & Ambiences Sports Crowd Cheer! Play Track 41 sounds included, 15 mins total $14.95

    Welcome sports fans to Sports Crowd Cheer sound library.

    Be in the crowd up close with this mini-pack of over 40 crowd reactions including cheers, boos, your ups, your downs, down to the buzzer, score and more!  Short crowd bursts to longer reactions with sirens and horns.  With sounds from the arena, ballpark, stadium, and court, it’s a score from Carma Studio!

  • Environments & Ambiences Soccer Stadium Ambience Play Track 123 sounds included, 170 mins total $20

    Recorded throughout 3 seasons, during the course of more than 10 matches on Sport Lisboa & Benfica’s beautiful Estádio da Luz, Soccer Stadium Ambience gathers a wide range of crowd reactions and emotions; useful for background ambiences that can be applied not only on audiovisual football content but also on other large stadium sports-based projects.

    All prominent dialogue between supporters was either removed or toned down with the aid of mastering and EQing software, in order to preserve the neutral nature of this library, allowing certain crowd reactions to flow naturally. There are also no long fade-ins our fade-outs, permitting whoever acquires this library to create their own edits and collages however deemed necessary. Some very light wind and noise removal techniques were applied on certain audio files, without impairing the original mood presented by the crowd.

    Between long takes of supporters singing, booing, celebrating goals, reacting to good team moves and bad referee decisions, this nearly 3 hour long library recorded in an always packed location will provide the necessary emotional crowd feedback to your sports-based projects.

  • Sports Sound Effects Large Crowd Reactions Play Track 81+ sounds included, 53 mins total $75

    Sometimes emotion comes when you feel together as one. This is happening in stadiums, arenas, demonstrations when people are as one voice. This collection gets you the power of the crowd. People will go through various feelings, sometimes silent or very noisy, you will be able to cover a lot of situations with it. Moreover ambisonic format-B 3D recordings are great to enhance those kind of situations.

    About Ambisonics:
    This is an Ambisonics sound effects library - and by using the free SoundField SurroundZone 2 plugin you can convert the B-format files into your preferred format (stereo, 5.0, 5.1, 6.0, 6.1, 7.0 or 7.1 surround). Note: The library also contains ready-made stereo mixdowns for your convenience.
  • Sports Sound Effects Italian Sports Play Track 243 sounds included, 77 mins total $32

    This is a collection of authentic sounds from sporting events, captured in Italy.

    The Italian Sports library comes with everything from soccer crowd chanting, singing, cheering, booing and whistling.
    Also includes recordings of professional and amateur soccer matches on grass and concrete + more.

    60 sound files (23 minutes total) are included in the pack so you can build an authentic soundscape of a sporting event.

    Each sound file has been carefully named and tagged for easy search in Soundminer and is Universal Category System (UCS) compliant.

    (see the full track list below).

    Just updated:
    An additional 183 files (54 minutes) have been added to the pack, featuring soccer, boxing, skiing, horse racing, and tennis sound effects and ambiences
    Various soccer kicks and ball impacts, footsteps and movements on grass and keeper sounds are also included.

  • Basketball Game Ultra is a huge sound effects library for, well, basketball. It includes both an international match field recording (with over 5,000 people attending the game) and isolated sounds of backboard hoops, basket swish nets, metal bars, shoe squeaks and dribbles on various hard surfaces, as well as other related sounds – all performed by a professional basketball player in indoor and outdoor courts as well as inside the studio.

    Οur aim with this collection is to give you choices to:

    • Create realistic soundscapes of world class basketball games or other sports events
    • Design from scratch your own unique sound frames
    • Foley the character in your audiovisual production
  • In collaboration with with Supervising Sound Effect Editor/Designer Enos Desjardins (Close, Black Mirror, Trust) If a Tree Falls presents “Boxing Gym”

    For our Boxing Gym library we visited three different gyms around the UK. Two in London and a children’s gym in Newcastle and present a wide range of sounds to enhance your library.

    We captured a variety of punches at various strengths, multiple perspectives and on different equipment; punch bags, pads, punch ball and speed ball, featuring single hits and combinations of impacts.

    Additionally, we recorded body falls in the ring, corner pads and ropes. Footwork in the ring with; steps, scrapes and shuffles.

    Plus ambience recordings of both adult and kids training sessions incorporating sparring, shadow boxing, fitness training, press-ups, sit-ups, skipping.

    All of our sounds have been recorded in high-quality 24bit, 96kHz using Sound Devices recorders and Sennheiser, Schoeps and Line Audio microphones. Each file has been tagged with detailed Soundminer metadata to speed up workflow and increase organisation.

  • Welcome to the Essential Stadium Crowd sound effects library: All the crowds, back room ambience and practice tracks were recorded at the Phoenix Cardinals Stadium, pre/during and post game. I had the opportunity to have a press pass and free reign in the stadium.

    Some of the recordings were recorded way up high in the upper bleachers, and some behind the end zones, as well as other interesting places. There are significant differences in the locations and the ‘thickness’ of the crowds. With this library, you should be able to fill out any sort of large sports arena ambience, as I’ve edited out most of the PA Announcer to give more of a general stadium feel that could be anywhere, and any major arena sporting event. The PA that is left in can easily be edited out.

    All the sounds were mastered in Pro Tools, with very transparent processing going on. My signal chain consisted of a C4 Compressor, DMG Equality EQ, and a L1 Limiter. All reverb is natural.

 

Latest sports releases:

 

  • Volleyball Match Ambience provides three distinct soundscapes spread through long, evolving and captivating sound recordings from Portugal’s primary masculine and feminine leagues, in addition to a regional match.

    This is a highly intense and balanced sport characterized by its fast-paced nature, emphasis on teamwork and strategic play, where players use a combination of spiking, blocking, setting, and serving techniques to gain an advantage and outmaneuver their opponents. The game is played on a rectangular court divided by a net, with each team aiming to score points by grounding the ball on the opposing team’s side.

    All recordings were attained from a centered front-row seat position in crystal-clear stereo, meaning you have all the necessary field-of-play interactions, in addition to varied crowd reactions ranging from diverse support chants, booing, casual conversations, clapping, local team speaker asking for crowd backing, referee whistles, coach instructions and air horns. This versatility of content guarantees full immersion, drama, excitement, intensity and realism for film, television, videogames, podcasts and more. Your audience will be transported courtside in no time.

    The regional match sound files are the longest with a constant stream of clapping and chants from supporters and the players themselves championing their respective team, interspersed with quieter moments, making it ideal for a more balanced volleyball match ambience. Also included in this section are pre-match drills.

    With over three and a half hours of content, this library is your all-access pass to the dynamic, exhilarating world of volleyball.

  • Environments & Ambiences Championship Baseball Crowds Play Track 350 sounds included, 155 mins total From: $115
    • Over 42,000 fans watching championship level baseball
    • 16.5 Gigs of sound
    • Over 2.5 hours of unique recordings
    • Stereo and Quad recordings anchored by Microtech Gefell M930 large diaphragm condenser mics
    • 11 minutes of boos
    • 21 minutes of cheers
    • Chants, callouts, reacts, idles, organs and more
  • Roller Hockey Match Ambience provides three distinct soundscapes spread through long, evolving and captivating sound recordings from Portugal’s primary masculine and feminine leagues, in addition to a WSE Champions League match.

    This is a fast-paced sport played on roller skates inside a smooth-surfaced rink, meaning there’s sounds that can’t be found on any other type of athletic activity such as sticks hitting the hard rubber puck or floor, intense break sounds from offensive transitions and hard hitting impacts of players on the confines of the rink.

    All recordings were attained from a centered front-row seat position in crystal-clear stereo, meaning you have all the necessary field-of-play interactions, in addition to varied crowd reactions ranging from diverse support chants, booing, casual conversations, overexcited children, clapping, local team speaker asking for crowd backing, referee whistles, coach instructions and air horns. This versatility of content guarantees full immersion, drama, excitement, intensity and realism for film, television, videogames, podcasts and more. Your audience will be transported courtside in no time.

    The WSE Champions League sound files have a constant stream of parents and local supporters championing their local team, interspersed with quieter moments, making it ideal for a more balanced roller hockey match ambience. Also included in this section are pre-match drills.

    With over three hours and forty minutes of content, this library is your all-access pass to the athletic, highly competitive world of roller hockey.

  • Environments & Ambiences Handball Match Ambience Play Track 15 sounds included, 101 mins total $20

    Handball Match Ambience provides two distinct soundscapes spread through long, evolving and captivating sound recordings from Portugal’s primary masculine league, in addition to a feminine EHF European Cup match.

    Handball is a fast-paced and dynamic indoor sport known for its rapid-fire offensive transitions and high number of goals from both teams on any given match. The game emphasizes quick passing, dynamic movement and strategic teamwork, perfect at evoking varied crowd responses in a short time span.

    All recordings were attained from a centered front-row seat position in crystal-clear stereo, meaning you have all the necessary field-of-play interactions, in addition to varied crowd reactions ranging from diverse support chants, booing, casual conversations, goals from both teams, clapping, referee whistles and air horns. This versatility of content guarantees full immersion, drama, excitement, intensity and realism for film, television, videogames, podcasts and more. Your audience will be transported courtside in no time.

    With over one and a half hours of content, this library is your all-access pass to the exhilarating, intense world of handball.

  • Step into the heart of English lower league football with “Close Crowds: Football Terrace” — a collection of 233 high-quality sounds recorded at a small EFL League 2 game*. This diverse library captures the essence of small football stadiums in the English Football League, ranging from close reactions and individual shouts to smaller group dynamics and large crowd chants, all meticulously labelled with unique names for quick and easy integration into your project.

    The smaller setting allowed for the capturing of more nuanced shouts and reactions, which can often be drowned out in larger stadiums. A personal favourite sound of ours is the CRWDSprt_English Football EFL League Fans Angry What Is He Doing Reaction_Decal Audio_ClsCrwdsFtbl file, you can hear the pain and frustration in their voice that us football fans are all too familiar with!

    Ideal for sports-related productions, podcasts, audiobooks, documentaries, video games and more this library ensures that the excitement and intensity of English Football  is brought to life with exceptional detail.

    *AFC Wimbledon vs Forest Green Rovers F.C. – away end approx 6000 attended.

     

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View more sports SFX libraries


 

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THE WORLD’S EASIEST WAY TO GET INDEPENDENT SOUND EFFECTS:
 
A Sound Effect gives you easy access to an absolutely huge sound effects catalog from a myriad of independent sound creators, all covered by one license agreement - a few highlights:

  • Cinematic & Trailer Sound Effects Abandoned Oil Tank Play Track 327 sounds included $40

    On a recording trip to the smaller Danish port town Struer, I came across an abandoned empty oil tank. Inside I found two giant wires attached to the floor and the ceiling of the tank, almost like a huge 2 stringed double bass. I’m telling you the reverb in there was longer than the Eiffel Tower on a cloudless day !

    On the outside this was just an empty abandoned building, but it turned out it was not empty at all because it was full of sound and a few dead birds. I’m glad I was curious enough to go inside for a closer investigation and not just pass by.

    After several hours of concentrated recording, it was nice to get my ears back out in dry air. I’m happy there are no open sends to Valhalla in real life but experiencing the eternal resonance on the low frequencies from the wires was absolutely amazing.

    Abandoned Oil Tank was recorded with a LOM basic Ucho stereo pair, a Zoom H6 and the LOM Geofon. All files are in 96 kHz/24 bit and contain the original recordings.

    The result is a unique sound effect library including balloon pop impulse responses from a truly unique location that very recently became even more unique since word says that the oil tank is no more and has abandoned this world.

    327 individual sounds – all tagged with Universal Category System (UCS) metadata.

    www.katrineamsler.com

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  • Electricity Sound Effects Polarity Play Track 975 sounds included $72

    Polarity delivers more than 950 sounds of electricity, science and technology – captured in several locations around the world, from electricity museums to science labs. About 50% of the library is all about electricity, with various types of Jacob’s Ladders, Tesla Coils, Ruhmkorff lamp and all sorts of impactful bursts of energy.

    Then we go through welders, plasma spheres, 3D printers, starting to cover a more broad technology theme – like old phones, telegraphs, dynamo wheels, rotary dials, whirling watchers, alarm, lab centrifuges, something scientists call a roller and a rocker, servo sounds, neon lights, a wimshurst machine and sparklers.

    Many sounds in this section were captured from vintage equipment, from a 1928’s tram to old telephone switchboards, high voltage levers and control surfaces.

    All content was recorded at 192KHz with a Sanken CO100K, a couple of Sennheiser 8040 and a Neumann 81i, translating into final assets that have plenty of ultrasonic content, ready for the most extreme manipulation.

    Bonus: Two extra libraries included for free:
    This library also includes two additional releases from Mattia Cellotto - for free: Crunch Mode delivers 230 crunchy sounds made with a variety of vegetables, fresh bread, pizza crust and a selection of frozen goods. The Borax Experiment gets you 158 squishy, gory, slimy and gooey sounds.
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  • Door Sound Effects Noisy Doors Play Track 44 sounds included $10

    This library contains recordings of eleven different types of doors specifically chosen for their interesting sound. I performed all actions with a lot of detail covering “open/close”, “knocks”, “bangs and thuds”, “handle grab and rattle” and when possible also “crackles and squeaks” (all recorded at various intensities)

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Explore the full, unique collection here

Latest sound effects libraries:
 
  • Trench Rammers is a one-of-a-kind sound library, created by sound designer Barney Oram. It features recordings of two 20th century Trench Rammers, some of the last operating machines of their kind in the world. The library features 48 files in total, capturing the Trench Rammers using a variety of microphones and perspectives, supplied in 192kHz 24bit WAV file format.

    This library contains multiple recordings of two antique Trench Rammers, the Pegson ER5 and the Warsop Benjo, and also features additional recordings of four antique stationary engines, the Amanco Hired Man (1920s), the JAP 1947, the Lister D (1940s) and the Norman T3000.

    Recorded in Leeds, UK, this library features multi-mic coverage and a range of distance positions captured on all included source content. Microphones used include; Sanken, Sennheiser, Neumann and DPA, captured with Sound Devices and Tascam recorders.

    This library includes detailed SoundMiner metadata and utilizes the UCS system for ease of integration into your library.

    Behind the Scenes Video:


    Trench Rammer


  • The cozy natural rhythms of hums, scrapes, splashes and thuds soundtrack the pottery workshop where the earth meets art. Find the true sound of it with Vadi Sound Library.

     

    About Pottery Workshop

     

    84 sounds that are clean, subtle and capture pretty much every object and action of the magic of fire and earth.

    From the rhythmic hum of the spinning potter’s wheel, to the splash of water, the scrape of clay with the tools shaping and smoothing surfaces, listen up for the symphony of creation.

    You will hear the tapping and thud of ceramic pottery, wooden ribs, wire cutters, loop tools, and sponges, all kinds of rummage, and mud actions on the potter’s wheel. The clicking and whirring of mechanisms during firing cycles add a mechanical counterpoint to the workshop’s natural rhythms.

    You will get variations of sounds in different proximity, size, and style of action. This collection is handy due to the clarity and diversity of the raw sounds. They have both Foley and practical usability and room for further sound design.

    You will get intuitive, detailed naming, UCS compatibility and the usual Vadi Sound craft and attention to detail in 84 pristine sounds. Recorded in 24bit-96kHz.WAV format on our favorite Sennheiser MKH 8040 stereo pair and Zoom F6.

     

    Keywords

    Pottery, workshop, electric potter’s wheel, wheel, oven, heat gun, mud, clay, ceramic, glass, wooden, metal, cup, handle, push, pull, move, remove, shape, tap, shake, clank, level, lid, tool, organizer, toolbox, rummage, fiberboard, button, bucket, sponge, plate, Dremel.

     

    What else you may need

    You may also want to check out Drag & Slide for 477 sound files of dragging, sliding, scraping and friction sounds of different objects made of wood, plastic, metal on various surfaces. Our bestseller Crafting & Survival is another good choice to get access to 1000+ survival, gathering, movement and crafting sounds.

  • All files are recorded 32bit, 192 kHz, with Shure KSM 137, Line Audio Omni1, FEL Clippy XLR EM272, Sonorous Objects SO.3 and JrF C-Series Pro+ microphones, Sound Devices MixPre-6 II & Zoom F3 recorders. Library contains wav files of driving, interior and exterior foley, mechanical and electrical sounds. It is also available in UCS.

  • Introducing Devils Bane Trailer, a chilling symphony of horror encapsulated in 533 meticulously crafted sound files, ready to unleash terror upon your audience. Dive into a nightmare realm where every creak, whisper, and shriek is meticulously designed to send shivers down your spine.

    • 533 files
    • 3.5 GB of game audio assets
    • All in 96k 24bit .wav
    • Dark Horror Movie Trailer Sound Effects Library
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  • Birdsong from the countryside of the Swedish rural region of Värmland.


   

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