As the saying goes, good things come to those who wait – that’s certainly the case for football/soccer fans as Euro 2020 finally kicks off. But we couldn’t watch all of the games this summer without thinking about what is going on behind the scenes – how is data being used to make a difference in the world of football?
To find the answers, we thought there was no better place to start than talking to our friends and partners at the DFB (German Football Association). In the latest episode of DataXpresso, Helena Schwenk is joined by Dr Sebastian Koppers, Project Lead, TechLab at the DFB-Akademie, to get the inside track on how the DFB is using technology to inform decision-making and how football compares to other industries in this respect.
Sebastian provides great insight into the TechLab project he is running and what his team is doing to impact performance on the pitch. If you want the benefit of insights from one of the leading football associations in the world, give the episode a listen here:
Want to find out more about the TechLab at the DFB-Akademie?
Here’s a quick breakdown of the project and what the team is setting out to achieve. Let’s start with the TechLab’s mission:
“Empower players, coaches and experts to use player-centric football technology by running an interdisciplinary shared learning space.”
It’s part of the ‘Performance, Technology and Innovation’ unit at the DFB-Akademie and the team works closely with the research and data scientists to support the performance experts.
As project lead, Sebastian is responsible for designing, implementing and running the TechLab, so where can you find further insights from him and the team?
Data in football – further reading
Sebastian’s PhD research was a segway into his current role. He investigated the individual effects of different displays of performance feedback with football players in a state-of-the-art football simulator, which you can read about here.
If you want to keep up to date with the work of the team at the TechLab, check out the DFB-Akademie homepage.
Finally, you can get in touch with Sebastian if you’d like to explore any of the topics discussed on the podcast further via Linkedin.
Throughout the tournament we’ll be sharing videos, podcasts and blogs investigating the role of data in football. Check out our Euro 2020 hub here.
