When you think of grassroots football, you might picture muddy pitches, small crowds, and passionate players. But thanks to creators like Gavin Penrose, these local moments are reaching millions of fans online with broadcast-quality livestreams.
For over a decade, Gavin Penrose has been capturing the raw energy and drama of football across England. From filming grassroots matches on his iPhone to covering Premier League games with a Canon R5c, Gavin’s journey is one of passion, persistence, and continuous innovation.
With more than 150 million views across YouTube and TikTok, Gavin has become the largest YouTube creator in the North of England, specializing in grassroots football content. But his story didn’t stop at recorded videos—he wanted to take things live. That’s where his partnership with YoloBox and Network Bonding changed everything.
The Early Days: Filming Football with Just an iPhone
Like many creators, Gavin started small.
“I’ve filmed for about 12 years now, starting with an iPhone on the side of a pitch,” he recalls.
From those humble beginnings, Gavin has grown into a professional sports videographer, now using a Canon R5C with a 24-105mm 2.8 lens as his main setup. His work spans from covering grassroots amateur matches to Premier League games.
But even as his camera gear advanced, livestreaming remained a challenge.
First Attempt at Livestreaming: A Novel Idea, Poor Quality
Around 2019, Gavin experimented with live streaming local matches. He hooked up his Canon 90D to a phone and used streaming software to go live.
While innovative at the time, the broadcasts suffered from one major issue: signal strength.
“Even though it was a novel idea of live streaming local football, the quality was very poor due to signal strength.”
After struggling with inconsistent streams, Gavin eventually gave up on livestreaming, feeling that the alternatives—lugging around a laptop, investing in Starlink, or carrying multiple devices—were too impractical for a one-man operation on busy match days.
From YoloBox Instream to YoloBox Ultra in 2024
Fast forward to the 2024/25 football season. The itch to livestream returned. Gavin saw a gap: no one else in his area was streaming local football live. He knew this could set his channel apart and provide new opportunities.
This time, Gavin wanted to do it right.
After countless YouTube tutorials and research, he discovered the YoloLiv Instream, perfect for vertical livestreaming. Within weeks, he was hooked:
“I soon realised what amazing products YoloLiv were producing, and I was hooked!”
But Gavin wanted even more flexibility—specifically, the ability to stream both horizontally to YouTube and vertically to other platforms simultaneously.
That’s when he upgraded to not one, but two YoloLiv Ultras.
Discovering Network Bonding: The Game-Changer
When Gavin first tried livestreaming years ago, the idea was exciting but the experience wasn’t. Using his Canon 90D hooked up to a phone, he could go live, but the weak signal meant streams were often low quality.
Even when he returned to livestreaming in the 2024/25 season, he faced the same problem:
- His phone hotspot wasn’t stable enough.
- A single 4G SIM card in his Ultra sometimes worked, sometimes didn’t.
- Paying customers noticed buffering and lag.
“I wanted the best for my paying customers, but the viewing experience just wasn’t great.”
Gavin knew livestreaming could take his channel and business to the next level, but he needed a solution to make it reliable every single time.
That’s when he discovered Network Bonding.
“I tried bonding and it solved all my problems at once.”
By combining multiple internet connections (his Ultra’s SIM card + his phone’s hotspot), Gavin suddenly had the stability he’d been chasing for years.
Real Benefits Gavin Experienced with Bonding
1. Professional Reliability
With bonding, Gavin now achieves 95%+ of livestreams with 0% dropped frames.
- On the rare streams where frames drop, it’s just 200–300 frames over a 2-hour broadcast—less than 10 seconds of lost footage.
- For his audience, that means uninterrupted viewing.
- For Gavin, it means he can focus on the game, not the signal.
2. Simplified Setup for a One-Man Crew
As a solo videographer, Gavin doesn’t have the luxury of a technical team. Bonding makes it simple:
- Insert a SIM card into the Ultra.
- Activate his phone hotspot.
- Let the device bond them automatically.
No laptops, no external encoders, no Starlink—just plug, bond, and go live.
3. Consistency Across Different Venues
Football takes him to a variety of grounds—some with strong signals, others with weak coverage. Bonding gives him peace of mind: even if one connection struggles, the other keeps the stream stable.
4. Viewer Satisfaction and Growth
By delivering smooth broadcasts, Gavin keeps his paying customers happy and continues to grow his audience. High-quality, consistent streams mean fans trust his channel as their go-to place for local football.
Fine-Tuning for the Perfect Livestream
At first, Gavin streamed at 4K, 50fps, 20,000kbps—but even bonding couldn’t guarantee perfection at those demanding settings.
After adjusting to:
- 1080p
- 25fps
- 4000kbps, H.265
…the results were flawless.
“Every stream now goes perfect. For the average person watching on their phone or TV, 1080 is more than acceptable.”
This balance of efficiency + bonding stability gives his fans broadcast-quality streams without the buffering issues that once frustrated them.
Behind the Scenes: Streaming Football with YoloLiv Ultra
On match days, Gavin’s workflow is simple but powerful:
- Arrive early and perform a speed test.
- Set up bonding using the SIM card in the Ultra + his phone hotspot.
- Go live confidently, knowing the bonded connection keeps streams rock-solid.
His Ultras are often packed away in his backpack, connected via HDMI out, allowing him to film freely while still streaming seamlessly.
🎥 You can see some of Gavin’s livestreams here:
The Results: A Game-Changer for Local Football
Thanks to YoloLiv Ultra and Network Bonding, Gavin has turned livestreaming from an unreliable experiment into a core part of his business.
He now delivers professional-quality broadcasts of grassroots and professional football alike—without lugging around bulky gear or worrying about poor connections.
For fans who can’t make it to the pitch, his livestreams provide a front-row seat to the action. For Gavin, they’ve opened new doors for growth, community building, and monetization.
“Bonding solved all my problems at once. Every stream now goes perfectly.”
Final Thoughts
From filming on an iPhone to broadcasting with YoloLiv Ultras, Gavin’s journey shows how the right tools can empower creators to punch above their weight.
For any solo sports videographer or small production team, YoloLiv Ultra with Network Bonding makes professional livestreaming not just possible but effortless.
388 total views, 67 views today
Hailey, a Customer Success Specialist at Yololiv, she brings immense enthusiasm to assisting users in understanding the various features of YoloCast and resolving any usage-related issues they may encounter. Alongside her support efforts, she also curates articles sharing tips, troubleshooting advice, and other helpful insights to enhance users’ experience with YoloCast.
