Your athletic director just told you the game has to go to the NFHS Network. Maybe it's a playoff game, maybe your state or conference routes regular-season games there too. The good news is that the NFHS Network takes a standard RTMP stream, so you can still produce it yourself with your own scoreboard. This guide covers the rights side, getting the stream key, and two ways to send the stream: from an iPhone or from a laptop running OBS.
Why games end up on the NFHS Network
Many state associations give the NFHS Network exclusive rights to postseason games. In those states, a playoff game can stream only to the NFHS Network, even if you've streamed every regular-season game to YouTube or Facebook. Some conferences and schools also route regular-season games through it.
That means the first question is never "how do I stream this?" It's "where am I allowed to stream this?" Talk to your athletic director before you announce anything, and ask specifically:
- Is this game an NFHS Network event, and who set it up?
- Are we allowed to stream it anywhere else at the same time? (Often the answer is no.)
- Are there rules about sponsor spots, music over the PA or posting highlights afterward?
Our guide to high school sports streaming rights goes through these questions in more detail. Rules differ by state and change over time, so treat your athletic director and state association as the final word.
The School Broadcast Program and your stream key
Schools in the NFHS Network's School Broadcast Program get a stream key for NFHS's RTMP ingest, through NFHS's Broadcast Me app or through the school's NFHS account. In practice, the athletic director or the school's NFHS contact usually controls that account, so the key will come from them.
What you need from them, for each event:
- The RTMP server URL. This is the address your encoder sends video to.
- The stream key. A long string that ties your stream to this specific game or channel.
- Confirmation the event exists on the NFHS side, with the right teams, date and start time.
Ask for these at least a few days before the game, not in the parking lot. If you're unsure how keys work for your school (one per event or one that's reused), ask the athletic director or check with NFHS directly at nfhsnetwork.com. Treat the key like a password: anyone who has it can send video to your game.
Option 1: stream from the ScoreCastr iPhone app
If you don't have a laptop and capture card, two iPhones will do it. The ScoreCastr iPhone app is in public beta on TestFlight and free during the beta (Android is coming later). It has been tested with the NFHS Network's RTMP server and stream key.
The setup uses two phones:
- The scoring phone runs the match. In the app, scoring is available for football, with more sports coming. For other sports, the scorekeeper can open the ScoreCastr dashboard in the phone's browser at scorecastr.co while the iPhone app streams.
- The streaming phone films the game. It joins the match by scanning a QR code, with no account needed, and the scoreboard graphics are built into its video using the match's template and colors.
On the streaming phone, paste the NFHS server URL and stream key into the app's stream settings. There's no sign-in with NFHS; you paste the key. The app streams in landscape at 1080p and 30 frames per second, at about 6 Mbps, and steps the bitrate down automatically if the upload can't keep up. Plan for about 5.4 GB of data for a two-hour game if you're on cellular. Our two-phone stream guide covers mounts, power and roles.
Option 2: stream from OBS with a ScoreCastr overlay
If you already run a camera into a laptop, OBS works with the NFHS Network the same way it works with any RTMP destination.
- Enter the destination. In OBS, open Settings, then Stream. Choose a custom server, paste the NFHS RTMP server URL into Server and the key into Stream Key.
- Add the scoreboard. In your live scene, add a Browser Source, paste your ScoreCastr match's overlay link and set it to 1920×1080. It sits on top of your camera.
- Score from any device. The scorekeeper runs the dashboard in a browser on a phone, tablet or laptop. Changes show up on the stream right away.
- Check your output settings. Ask NFHS or your athletic director whether there are recommended resolution and bitrate settings for your school's setup, and match them.
Live scorebugs are on ScoreCastr's free plan. If you want halftime scoreboards, lineups and lower thirds on a playoff broadcast, those are part of the full graphics set on the Starter plan and up. For a deeper walkthrough of the browser source, see how to add a scoreboard overlay to OBS.
Test before game day
A playoff game is the worst time to find out the key is wrong. Ask whether you can do a test stream to the event or to a test event ahead of time, and confirm with whoever controls the NFHS account that the video actually showed up. Then, at the venue:
- Run an upload speed test from the exact spot you'll stream from, ideally at the time of the game.
- Start the stream early on a pregame shot and have someone watch it through the NFHS Network on a phone.
- Check that the scoreboard is readable and the score and clock match the stadium board.
Common problems and fixes
| Problem | Likely cause | What to try |
|---|---|---|
| Encoder connects, nothing shows on NFHS | Wrong key or event not set up yet | Confirm the key and event with your athletic director or NFHS |
| Encoder won't connect at all | Server URL typo or extra spaces | Paste the server URL again from the source, with nothing after it |
| Stream keeps buffering for viewers | Upload too slow for your bitrate | Lower the bitrate in OBS, or move to a better connection. The phone app steps down on its own. |
| Scoreboard missing in OBS | Browser source hidden or wrong size | Check it's visible, at the top of the source list, and set to 1920×1080 |
| Phone gets hot and dims | Cellular plus charging in the sun | Shade the phone and use a good power source |
NFHS game checklist
- A week out: confirm with your athletic director that the game is an NFHS event and where else, if anywhere, you can stream it.
- A few days out: get the RTMP server URL and stream key, and confirm the event details on the NFHS side.
- Before you leave: set up the ScoreCastr match with both teams, and enter the server and key in the phone app or OBS.
- At the venue: test upload speed, power up, and mount the camera or phone high near midfield.
- Before start time: go live on a pregame shot and have someone confirm it on the NFHS Network.
- After the final: end the stream and send your athletic director a note on anything that went wrong, so it's fixed before the next round.
Specifics like key handling, event setup and recommended settings are controlled by NFHS and your school, not by your encoder. When in doubt, ask your athletic director or NFHS before game day.