In the short interim between the Premier League season close in May and the 2018 World Cup start in June, football fans are geering themselves up for an exciting summer of football.
We wanted to explore how up and coming technologies are being adopted in this high value industry as we are seeing a increasing influence of technology in sport, especially football. Clubs, broadcasters and private companies are investing more and more in fan engagement and asking the question how best to utilise emerging technologies to improve the experience of the sport, not only for the players but also the fans.
We have found three recent uses of futuristic technology, AI, robotics and VR to show how the sports industry is positioning themselves as digital pioneers.
Squadguru - Artificially Intelligent Football
One of the most interesting elements of sport is the development off-pitch culture and activity that supports engagement of fans between games. From competitive Fifa competitions, sweepstakes on the best players, to sticker collections and pre-match television coverage, the games themselves are only a small part of the excitement.
Over recent years, Fantasy Football has been a large part of the culture surrounding major league games. Essentially following a user-designed team of real life footballers in Fantasy games, the Fantasy Premier League is one of the most popular practices for football fans in the UK. As we approach some of the biggest seasons of the year, app developers at Southampton University have created an innovative way to test the integration potential of AI in Fantasy Football.
Using their self-titled app Squadguru, they used data simulations and streams of player information to build up a comprehensive database of statistics to provide game outcome predictions. Throughout the 2017 - 2018 Premier League season, they conducted their experiment, comparing the successes of a human player and the AI app as they made their way up the league tables. With the human contestant finishing in the lower 800s, Squadguru ended up 112th, in the top 0.7% of the world.
Nissan Pitch-R
Unveiled at the Champions League match between Real Madrid and Liverpool, the Nissan Pitch-R Robot has the innovative ability to draw out pitch lines on any surface. Designed to bring the physical elements of the game onto fields, gardens, schools and full sizes competitive pitches, Pitch-R uses eco-friendly, washable paint to draw pitch lines and automatically navigates its way around the designated space.
Given the warm reception the public have given to home-robotic devices such as the Roomba, which acts an autonomous hoover as it travels across floors and carpets, the Pitch-R is designed to carry out a similar function. Inspired as a passion project by Nissan, the small robot is designed to be compact and accessible for every football player - without the restrictions of hefty price tags and bulky packaging.
This serves as a standout example of how the world of sport is both embracing and encourage technological advances, as they continue to enhance the experience of the game for the player, the fan, the enthusiast and the amateur.
BBC Virtual Reality Match Streaming
As the World Cup rapidly approaches, new and innovative ways of viewer-engagement are being introduced to encourage technology being integrated into the standard practices of sport consumption.
The BBC decided to show a vote of approval of Virtual Reality (VR) experiences when they announced they would stream all 33 matches of the World Cup in VR. Adding this form of technology as a new immersive way that football fans, in the comfort of their own VR corporate box, is an exciting step forward for sports viewing.
HD quality viewing will allow fans to experience minute details of the game, right down to the writing on a red card or the blades of grass beneath the ball, aiming to provide a unique and engaging experience.
The VR streaming also marks a significant change for the BBC, as they continually introduce new features and bonus additions for their viewers to utilise, from the red button to the VR headset. Their goal to become one of the forefront adopters of technology is becoming even more achievable with each new innovative product they endorse.
The World Cup 2018 is set to be one of this years biggest and most exciting sporting events, and as football fans around the world begin to celebrate their chosen teams, the world of technology is ready to influence and enhance on the sport we all know and love. To find out more about Roller’s plans for the World Cup 2018, make sure you’re following us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn! Or to get in touch with us as part of our Guest Interview series, drop us a message at nikki@rolleragency.co.uk.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : http://rolleragency.co.uk/blog/technology-influencing-football/