Data Analytics: The Role it Plays in Sports
Data and data analytics have become ubiquitous at this point, with every imaginable industry on the face of Earth now relying on it extensively. It holds for the sports industry as well, where the scope to leverage data to enhance experiences for every stakeholder in the ecosystem is immense. And even though some may find it hard to believe, it is this industry that has brought the concept of performance analytics to the fore. Globally renowned sporting events, such as the National Football League, Wimbledon, and Formula 1, have, relying on performance analytics and other data-driven tools for longer than you would be inclined to think.
Based on the sport, how this phenomenon is implemented tends to vary. Take Wimbledon, for example, tennis players and their coaches have long depended on videos and reports to analyze their performances, leverage the insights for training and so much more. Suffice it to say that there is immense scope for how data analytics is leveraged in the sports industry. With that being said, let’s explore this further and see some other application areas for data analytics in this context.
1. Understand the movement of fans: One of the first uses of data analytics in this realm is for tracking and understanding the evolution of fans at any given event. For this, organizers can make use of electronic tickets, wearables, and more to see how they move across the venue, what they buy, etc. The information, then, presents the opportunity to adapt pricing strategies, souvenirs on offer, and the overall marketing strategy for any given sporting event.
2. Tracking players’ performances: Be it via wearables or sensors attached to players’ clothing; it is now possible to monitor players’ performance during a game. To what end? Well, there are several reasons and it depends on the sport in question. For example, in basketball, it can be used to sift through each shot and determine patterns, accuracy rates, etc. The eventual goal is to enhance the player’s performance.
3. Enhanced accuracy: Since the technologies that enable data analytics are so agile, it is possible to implement the latter in different aspects of any game. Consequently, organizers, sports teams, and more make use of sensors and other tools to ensure accuracy and uniformity of the playing field. Case in point: Cricket; in this sport, the pitch is embedded with several sensors, including in the wickets, for various purposes. These sensors help umpires decide if a player was back within the crease after taking a run or if the bowler had pitched a no-ball. It can also be used to analyze overs, batsmen’s hit rate, and so much more.
Sports data analytics has a whole world of opportunities to offer and in every relevant context, including players’ performance, fans’ experiences, playing field, and more. And given the amount of data we can generate, the sports industry’s collective ability to leverage data analytics will help them take their events to a new and exhilarating level.
