It’s just a month away from the Cowboys’ season kickoff, and fans better stay on their best behavior once the stadium doors reopen. This year, the Cowboys and the rest of the NFL will use facial recognition software to identify each fan who enters a stadium for a game.

The league took a test drive with facial authentication technology last year through the use of “Express Entry” at several NFL stadiums. The system, launched by Verizon and software startup Wicket, allowed fans to pre-enroll their facial scans into a database that allows them to enter stadiums in conjunction with walkthrough security scanners at a walking pace.

The trial run seems to have scored big, as Wicket COO Jeff Boehm announced the program’s league-wide expansion for the 2024 season. In a LinkedIn post, Boehm said Wicket’s facial authentication software will “streamline and secure the credentialing program” and “ensure that properly credentialed media, officials, staff and guests can easily and safely access restricted areas, including the playing field, press box or locker rooms.”

The selfie-based biometrics system runs alongside Accredit Solutions’ accreditation software, which checks credentials at security checkpoints throughout the stadiums. Those who have registered credential badges can have a real-time selfie compared to a user-submitted photo that is already in the system’s files at a checkpoint.

Social credit rating system and microchips for humans are next

What a shame the software is unreliable.