Believe it or not, it’s possible to create your own sports livestream event, whether it’s just for watching or to make money from it. Here are a few ways to set it up.

Legal Concerns

Before you start broadcasting anything, make sure it’s legal to do so. Not all sporting events want you airing their game for others free of charge. And, while everyone loves making extra dough, you’re not going to be making anything if you’re slapped with a fine or a lawsuit from the ballpark or stadium owners.

According to Forbes, the sports industry will grow 4.8 percent annually over the next five years. That’s a huge increase compared to its past growth of 3 percent. Pro sports are growing, but so are amateur and young sports.

If you can pull it off, livestreaming a sports game is a great way to get exposure and make some money while you’re at it. Even if you can’t charge admission or virtual tickets for the show, you can stream games for friends and family in most cases.

Let’s say your family lives all over the country. Your son is playing soccer this year and is really excited about it. Grandma wants to see it, but can’t make the games. Solution: livestream.

Setting Up An Account

Before you start streaming, you will probably want to set up a livestream account with one of the popular service providers. You may also need to rent a projector for friends to watch. Finally, make sure your camera (or mobile device) gear is up to the task of streaming.

Open a YouTube account to host the video. This is the easiest option.

You must be verified (Google does this by phone call or SMS).

Once verified, you can proceed with the setup. Usually, it’s a good idea to link your Google+ profile or page to your YouTube Channel.

Finally, you must enable your YouTube channel for live events through the “status and features” section. Once you get to this page, enable “Live Events” in your video manager.

Set Up Your Event

Navigate to the “Live Events” area in Video Manager and create a live event by selecting “Create Live Event.”

Complete the “Basic Info” on this page, like entering a title for the event, a description, and keyword tags. Make your description accurate and specific. Explain what the event is about, what will be in the video, and try to make it exciting.

Schedule a date and time for the event

Select a security setting for it. You can choose “public,” for example if you want everyone to see it. You can also select “Private” if you want it to be “invite only.”

Invite guests by name, email, or Google+ Circles. You can also opt for “Unlisted” to have a public (somewhat) anonymous event that won’t be promoted on Google+.

When you hold your event isn’t nearly as important as telling people about it and making sure that you’re on-time with the event and that the event is accurately described in the description area for the video. Users don’t like it when an event is inaccurately described, or when an event starts earlier or later than advertised.

Customization Options

Go to “Advanced Settings.” YouTube gives you the option of a live chat, which allows viewers to ask questions and interact with you in real time. Enable this. You won’t regret it. An engaged livestream crowd is one that won’t bounce on you.

Select the most relevant category for the event. This is also important because the description and the category help people find you on YouTube.

Now, make selections for recording preferences. Once the broadcast is finished, it posts automatically to YouTube and your Google+ account home page.

You can then edit it and share it with whomever you want.

You also have the option of charging a fee for the “reruns” if you want. This is totally up to you, and you’ll need to integrate your account with a third-party payment system if you want to take advantage of this feature.

Running An Off-Air Demo

Before you go live, launch a demo screen and test the livestream functionality. If you’re using something like Google’s YouTube platform to test this, you can launch a demo by selecting “Start Hangout On Air.” This will bring up a prompt to download the Hangouts plugin. Once you’ve installed it, the Hangout on Air window opens up and your webcam will launch.

In the bottom right of your screen, you can see how many people are watching the livestream event. Demo your mic to make sure it’s working, test out your camera, and make sure your bandwidth is up to the task.

Rachel Marie Smith is a graduate from the University of the Arts with a BFA in Film/Video. Some recent achievements include, magazine publications, and features in art galleries and film festivals. She is well versed in all areas of filmmaking, but has a particular joy for producing and camera operation. Rachel loves to look at the world through the viewpoint of the lens. It’s the things around her that are inspirations for her personal work, as well as the people in her life. Rachel is currently the Head of Film Marketing and Graphic Design at Resolution Rentals and is currently in post production for her first feature film, Normandy: A World Apart