Mexico vs Senegal friendly is a test for 4K

Mexico vs Senegal
Mexico vs Senegal

Update: I previously reported that the game would be streamed to Sony 4K TVs, however, that's not quite accurate. The game will only be available in 4K in four locations: in a box at Marlins Park; the Sony office in San Diego and NeuLion's offices in NY and San Diego. Sorry for the confusion!

Original story below...

When world football phenom Pelé called it "the beautiful game" back in the '50s, football (or soccer for the US folks) was just barely being broadcast in color.

The sport and the technology to watch it has come a long way since then, going from bulky CRT TVs to insanely thin flat panels that are capable of over a billion colors.

Tomorrow the evolution in watching the beautiful game takes its next step during a friendly between Mexico and Senegal that will be broadcast in Ultra-High Definition.

The game, which takes place in Miami, Florida, will be tested on Sony 4K TVs by a company called NeuLion, which is responsible for broadcasting 4K streams over the internet and has recently been used by both the NBA and BT Sport to stream Ultra HD content.

What makes the game so special is that it's part of a growing trend of 4K broadcasts, something multiple providers are interested in - DISH even has the technology to do so - but until networks get on board, 4K content will remain in the realm of online streaming.

The match-up starts at 8 pm ET (5 pm PT) on Wednesday, February 10 (or 1am GMT).

Nick Pino

Nick Pino is Managing Editor, TV and AV for TechRadar's sister site, Tom's Guide. Previously, he was the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar, covering TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He's also written for GamesRadar+, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he's not using if anyone wants it.