Your first broadcast, start to finish

Your first game on stream has a lot of moving parts: a camera, OBS, a stream key and a scorebug. This guide puts the ScoreCastr side in order, from creating the match days before to ending it after the final. Each step is short and links to the guide with the details.

Before game day: create the match

Set the match up ahead of time, not at the venue ten minutes before tip-off.

1. On Match Management, click Create New Match.
2. Pick the sport, enter both teams and their four-character scorebug names, add logos and colors, and choose a template.
3. Click Preview, then Create Match.

The full walk-through is in Create your first match.

Streaming a school game? Check with your athletic director or state association that you have the rights first. Many state associations have their own streaming agreements. The studio's streaming rights guide covers what to ask.

Before game day: add the overlay to OBS

1. Open the match with Control Dashboard.
2. Go to Overlays, then Live Preview, and click Copy Channel 1 URL.
3. In OBS, add a Browser source in your game scene, paste the link, set it to 1920 by 1080, and drag it above your camera.

The steps and the usual fixes are in Add your overlay to OBS. The overlay link belongs to this match only, so a new game next week needs its own link in OBS.

Do a test run

With OBS open, run through the game on the dashboard:

• Add a point or a goal to each team and watch it change in OBS.
• Start and stop the clock. See Clock and periods.
• On Starter and up, show and hide a graphic or two from Overlay Visibility, and try Go to Break.

When you're done, open Game Actions and click Reset Match. It puts the scores, periods and stats back to 0 so the match starts clean. Don't click End Match after a test: an ended match is marked completed and its score is locked.

On game day: set up

1. Open the match's Control Dashboard on the scorekeeper's device. It can be a laptop, tablet or phone. See What you need.
2. Check the status dot at the top of the dashboard reads Live. If it says Slow or Offline, sort out the internet before you go on air. See Connection status.
3. Check the score in OBS matches the dashboard: 0 to 0, first period.
4. If the scorekeeper can't see the OBS screen, click Pop Out on the Preview card. It opens a small window showing exactly what's on air.

On Starter and up, put the Title Card up before the start with Show Title Card in Overlay Visibility, and take it down when play begins.

Run the game

Most of the game happens on the Scoring tab. It has the score buttons, the clock and the period for your sport.

• Score as it happens. A quick tap is better than catching up later. See Keep score live.
• Run the clock to match the scoreboard in the building, and fix it when they drift. See Clock and periods.
• Bring graphics up and down from Overlay Visibility: lower thirds, player stats, the ticker. See Show and hide graphics.

Glance at the status dot now and then. If it goes yellow or red, keep scoring: your changes are saved on the device and send when the connection comes back.

Go to break

At halftime or between periods, click Go to Break at the top of the Overlay Visibility panel. The scorebug comes off and the full scoreboard goes up. The button reads In Break while it's on. Click it again when play restarts, and the scorebug comes back.

Go to Break needs the Starter plan. On Free, the scorebug stays up through the break.

End the match

After the final:

1. Make sure the final score and stats are right. Once the match ends, the score and stats are locked. You can still show and hide graphics, so you can clear the screen afterwards.
2. Open Game Actions and click End Match, then confirm.

You'll return to your match list, where the match now shows Completed. More in End a match.

Before you end it, you can also click Share Match to send fans the public match page, or Download Box Score for a PDF (soccer, football and field hockey).

Checklist

• Streaming rights confirmed with your athletic director or association
• Match created a day or two before, with scorebug names, logos and colors
• Channel 1 link in OBS as a 1920 by 1080 browser source, above the camera
• Test run done, then Reset Match (not End Match)
• Status dot reads Live at the venue
• Score and clock kept live, break handled with Go to Break (Starter)
• Final checked, then End Match