Sports technology and industry trends are known for innovative methods to boost performance, engage audiences, prevent injuries, and raise overall viewing experience from professional sports events. These innovations have revolutionized the way fans and players interact with sports, so it’s imperative to learn sports industry trends for 2024.
Unveiling the Current Sports Industry Innovations: Emerging Trends in 2024
Now we will take a good look at many ways where technology and sports trends to watch have improved sports. We will also check the ways emerging trends in sports improve performance, as well as how fans perceive it, so let’s begin!
Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)
Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are one of the major technologies that are improving the manner we make use of screens to watch our favorite sports, and creating exciting interactive experiences.
Virtual reality makes use of a headset and places you in a computer-generated world that you can test out. In contrast augmented reality is a bit different. Instead of inviting the user to a virtual world, it uses digital pictures and places them around you in layers in the real world by making use of either a clear visor or smartphone.
Virtual Reality is like being inside an event or video game, even when you are somewhere else. With VR, sports fans can watch live games as if they were seated inside the stadium. That is an exceptional level of immersion. Athletes also use VR to train and improve skills.
Facts: In football Martin Odegaard of Arsenal FC made use of VR to master the technique of Scanning on the football pitch.
Quote: Andreas Olsen’s take on Odegaard’s use of VR technology to hone his skills: “When he used it, one of the product development features added as a result was because he mentioned that he wanted to have a higher difficulty. He was very humble and respectful when doing the scenarios but instead of wanting it set at 100 percent speed, he asked if he could do it at 120 per cent. Now we have a slider where you take the speed up or down based on the actual speed of the scenario.”
On the other hand, Augmented Reality brings digital information into the real world. This technology will boost sports entertainment and fan engagement.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and prescriptive analytics
We have seen the use of AI in many areas of sports, even if many experts will not talk about it enough. But we don’t want to restrict the potential of Artificial Intelligence when they are used for businesses and enterprises. When we think of the possible uses of AI, then it is not wrong to infer how much the technology can fluorish in the future.
The market for AI in the sports industry has risen significantly in the past few years. This growth is due to how much AI technologies have advanced.
Fact: The global sports analytics market is projected to reach a valuation of $22 billion by 2030. Besides this, the global artificial intelligence sports market has been predicted to hit the $19.9 billion market by the year 2030.
This shows that the use of Artificial Intelligence in sports has expanded, and its global market has grown. This trend should continue as more sports teams and sports leagues make use of AI in sports. Another example is the use of Virtual Assistant Referee in football. This technology assists referees to correct any errors in their decisions to boost the integrity of the game.
Arsenal FC coach at the time, Unai Emery once said, “For me, VAR is positive. It’s coming to help us, to help the referees and to be fair in different circumstances in one game. After this, I think it’s also right to think to not stop the intensity and the rhythm in the matches and not to stop for a lot of minutes.”
Former Burnley coach Sean Dyche also remarked, “People who oppose it say ‘what about the maybes?’ but there will still be close calls. What I am after is to get as close to 100 percent [correct decisions] as you can. VAR must help, it can’t not help.”
Frank Lampard also noted the positive impacts of VAR in the English Premier League, “I think VAR at its best – and it still needs to be honed to make sure it’s at its best and that might take a period of time – to give the referees more eyes to get decisions right is a no-brainer.”
Other factors that impact the market growth are real-time sports data analytics, increased demand for player monitoring and tracking, AI sports predictions, and AI for sports betting.
Sensors and data analytics will be vital to success
Some players and athletes now wear smartwatches and other forms of sensors to provide data on their performance. This analysis helps the coach know what aspects of a player’s game that must be addressed and aspects to commend. Such an approach improves players’ performance by taking the right actions.
Blockchain will become a part of life
We have all heard about Blockchain technology, and how it works for cryptocurrencies. Now the technology has taken a step further in its application, and it’s not just about altcoins anymore. Blockchain is generally how people can secure their transactions without the need for a middleman. Sports can make the most of this technology to improve areas like investment in ticketing, athletes, and fight against doping.
Athletes continue to improve their peak performance
We all know that sports is all about insights and performance analysis, as well as what fans, stakeholders, and other new audiences expect from athletes and their team. So it is important for sports organizations to leverage new opportunities and measures in place to track the performance of athletes in top sports.
There are tools provided by top technology companies to help teams understand how actions led to consequences during the match. This is what performance analytics does. It helps in processing a lot of data like positioning of the ball, how fast an athlete runs, forehand power, and many more.
Real-time betting will enter the arenas, especially in Pakistan
iGaming brands are beginning to partner with tech companies with a lot of new tech trends incorporation into iGaming. Sports bettors from Pakistan can even hone their betting skills with AR. This offers significant changes in how fans watch sports events. It is even easier for bettors to compare 2 best betting apps in Pakistan by using AR.
Real-time data feeds enable live betting opportunities, and enables bettors to wager as the game or match goes on. As a result, bettors are able to analyze historical data, player performance, and other relevant factors to generate accurate predictions.
Smart stadiums and connected venues
Smart Stadiums make use of limitless technologies to boost the overall fan experience. With high-speed Wi-Fi, spectators can access content quickly, and this can be necessary during a football match. Since football is one of the biggest sports, the use of smart stadiums results in increased revenue streams and more efficient internal operations
Conclusion
Never forget that sports are becoming more important across the globe. Different sports have different rules, but they all have one thing in common, and that is the use of technological advancement to improve athlete performance and level of entertainment.
After all, the sports industry continues to grow, and is a multi-billionaire industry that has given a lot of people employment opportunities. Technological innovation is also what allows fans to stay ahead in getting the stats on their favorite players. These innovations engage fans and make all sports improve and entertaining to watch.
