The Constantly Evolving World Of Sports Analytics

By Joshua Parker


Tracking statistics was once viewed as the domain of commercial environments. But as technology continues to make inroads everywhere, a huge number of sports teams are now using data to drive action on and off the field. Coaches and their assistants are using powerful sports analytics tools to stay ahead of the competition.

No coach wants their star players to sit out matches because they're injured. And in some sports where the chances of getting hurt are quite high, finding effective ways to minimize injury levels is crucial. A number of teams have thus started using wearable gadgets and fitness trackers to gather data that would help detect, monitor and prevent injuries. Further analysis of the collected information could also help pinpoint causes of performance declines, such as poor sleeping habits. All in all, teams are able to keep their prized players fit while also reducing medical and insurance costs.

Although the vital determinants in team sports are quite hard to quantify, predictable patterns can still be observed. This is the reason why most teams now use videos of past matches in their preparations. Besides analyzing the game film, they also acquire stats on each player to identify strengths and weak areas of their opponents. This way, their ability to adapt to dynamic tactics and utilize their own strengths is significantly improved.

Analytics tools have enabled coaches to improve their teams while using fewer resources. Thanks to stats and modeling, it becomes easy to pick vital role players at lower costs while discarding high-maintenance individuals who perform dismally. Even the smaller teams are now becoming more competitive; better comparison techniques have facilitated the recruitment of players who can positively impact the entity's bottom line. In a nutshell, coaches are able to fix inefficiencies and take advantage of undervalued positions in a bid to optimize their roster.

Data analysis hasn't only become accepted among players and coaches; even the fans want a share of the cake. Teams could thus use data to improve fan interaction and experience. Thanks to social media platforms, sport entities can now engage supporters on a more personal level so that they too feel involved in the action. Additionally, broadcasters could offer a deeper insight into the proceedings. And in the current era of mobile streaming and global fan bases, ensuring that the goodies trickle down to the end-user has never been more important.

A number of teams still find it difficult to adopt statistical analysis due to the language barrier that exists between IT personnel and coaching staff. The best way to overcome this is to facilitate easier communication throughout the whole entity. From coaches and their players to statistical experts, everyone should learn the practices of effective communication and how to utilize available technical resources.

The use of analytics in professional sport is still in its infancy. Still, the trend will continue to evolve. Because data acquisition and analysis has hugely grown in importance, improvements will be seen as time goes by. In future, breakthroughs might be witnessed in key areas, such as predicting response behavior.

In the past, teams have mainly relied on coaching and a few tangential factors to achieve success in their fields. With better access to data analytics tools, huge developments can be expected in time to come. And the drastic shift won't happen simply due to data availability, but rather as a result of better communication between groups who previously struggled to achieve this.




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