Verizon vs T-Mobile vs AT&T 5G speed stadium tests show Big Red's NFL advantage
Ever since Verizon made the world's first 5G call on a pre-commercial network at the U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, and then the first one on a commercial network shortly before those went live in South Korea, it has had a specialized focus on providing ultrafast connectivity at NFL games.
While it has been duking it out with T-Mobile about the fastest cell connection experience at many Super Bowls, its position as the first high-band 5G provider has given it a unique advantage at places like stadiums, report the latest OpenSignal tests. Verizon's Ultrawide Band 5G dispersion is executed via mmWave base stations that are limited in terms of range and penetration, but ensure Gigabit 5G speeds, unlike the low- to mid-bands that T-Mobile is using.
Thus, the dedication to NFL stadiums as an official 5G provider has brought Verizon an expected reward - the fastest US carrier when it comes to 5G connectivity during games. T-Mobile is a distant second, as you can see in the chart here, followed by AT&T. T-Mobile beats them in terms of 5G availability, though, blanketing more of the venues with its 5G network. Still, Verizon's 10-year contract with the NFL as their "official 5G partner" has been paying off, it seems:
Opensignal data shows that the 5G experience was significantly better at NFL stadiums for our users on Verizon and T-Mobile than the overall mobile experience on those two carriers. For our AT&T users, 5G was better for upload speeds. However, it was our Verizon users that saw the largest improvements in their 5G mobile experience compared to the overall experience with Verizon.
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