Revolutionizing Women’s Sports with AI

July 12, 2023

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Feature Story 

Revolutionizing Women’s Sports with AI

The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 is less than 10 days away and the sporting world’s attention is on women’s sports.

Our Head of Biz Dev and Semi-Pro Footballer Kimberly Fernandez takes a look at how AI can change the game for female athletes.

While women’s sports has grown rapidly in recent years, fueled by access to new capital, there are still many challenges to overcome. Disproportionate media coverage, online abuse and gender bias at various levels of sport still persist.

In June we focused on how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing a major role in shaping the future of sports. That could extend to solving problems like bridging the gap between men’s & women’s sports.

AI has the potential to revolutionize the landscape of women’s sports and empower female athletes on and off the field. Here’s are 4 good examples of how it’s already doing that.

This edition of the newsletter is powered by the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga and the upcoming SportsInnovation 2024 event on March 20- 21 2024 in Düsseldorf, showcasing the latest technologies they are working with. 

Breaking the Bias

A quick internet search of the players with most goals scored in international football will send you to links naming Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Sunil Chettri (an Indian legend!) in the top 5. When in reality, there are 6 women with more international goals than CR7, who tops the men’s list. Mind you, I didn’t add any gender specification in my search. Yet was only shown lists of men.

That’s the internet for you, as it is now. Though hopefully not for long.

Companies like the truly innovative Correct the Internet are trying to change that.

Leveraging AI, media platforms can analyze and recognize women’s sporting events. This helps ensures equal coverage and promotes achievements of female athletes. Steps like these go a long way to shift societal perceptions, increase fan engagement, and inspire the next generation of female athletes.

Combating Online Abuse

Sure, everyone faces online abuse. But studies have shown that women athletes face 3 times the abuse of their male counterparts. The problem is bigger for them. So how can AI help?

Well FIFA believes it can. The upcoming 2023 Women’s World Cup will employ an AI software to detect and report instances of online harassment.

In collaboration with FifPro, FIFA introduced the Social Media Protection Service (SMPS) at Qatar22. This is a comprehensive set of tools aimed at safeguarding players participating in FIFA events. This initiative was launched in response to the significant increase in online abuse witnessed during the UEFA Euro 2020 and the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations.

AI-driven tools can detect and filter offensive content, ensuring a safer online environment. This allows for prompt intervention and helps foster a positive digital space for athletes to thrive.

Challenging Gender Bias in Product Design

Moving Beyond ‘Shrink It and Pink It’, innovation in product design has historically been biased towards men, neglecting the specific needs of women athletes.

Again, AI can help make for more inclusive and gender-neutral product development. This ensures that women have access to the right tools that enhance their performance, comfort, and overall experience in sports.

Nike have understood the importance of this with their recent launch (finally!) of a football boot for women, the Phantom Luna boot, described as the “most innovative and researched women’s-led boot”. They’re a bit late to this party, but better late than never eh.

First to this party was Laura Youngson, the boss lady and mastermind behind Ida Sports, who came up with the simple-yet-genius idea of creating soccer boots specifically tailored for women, way back in 2018.

She recognized that female athletes have some unique foot characteristics that differ from those of their male counterparts. 

For instance, women tend to have a shallower big toe, a higher arch, and smaller feet relative to their body height. Laura’s company focuses on catering to these nuances and providing female soccer players with boots that truly fit their feet like a glove.

Injury Prevention and Empowering Performance

Female footballers have a higher risk of suffering from ACL injuries, which are the most serious types of knee injuries. We didn’t know this and you might not have but others have known this for a while.

Studies have shown that the likelihood of these injuries occurring in women ranges from two to eight times higher than in men. Research by Dr. Okholm Kryger and others has highlighted other gender disparities in the sport, such as the playing surfaces and the design of football gear (like boots!).

She pointed out that women have different movement patterns and running styles than men, yet the length of studs on boots is typically designed based on male movement and traction. This mismatch increases the chances of women’s boots getting stuck in the surface, ultimately leading to injuries.

Six of the world’s top 16 players tore an ACL between June 2022 and April 2023 and that has led to five of those players missing the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

The answer lies with companies like Zone7 who have developed specific solutions for women’s football. They use AI to analyze vast amounts of player data, identify injury patterns, and provide personalized training programs,

They have successfully run their program throughout the FA Women’s Super League and are keen on expanding their operations across women’s sport. 

By optimizing training routines and reducing the risk of injuries, AI can empower female athletes to reach their full potential and extend their careers, ultimately elevating the quality of the game.

A Tech-Powered Revolution Where Champions Rise and Boundaries Shatter

As we gaze into the crystal ball of women’s sports and technology, one thing is clear: the future is going to be epic.

But here’s the catch: this future won’t just magically materialize. It requires our collective push, the combined efforts of athletes, sports organizations, the tech community, and of course fans.

It’s up to us to demand equal opportunities, to rally behind inclusive product design, and to amplify the voices of female athletes in the digital realm. We need to hold major corporations accountable and challenge them to step up their game, not just for the sake of profit, but for the empowerment of women in sports.

The future of women’s sports is in our hands, and together, we can make it legendary.

Image source: NewscastStudio

Feature Article

Unleashing the Power of AI in Sports

We didn’t really need chatGPT to tell us this: AI is here to revolutionise the way athletes train, teams strategize, and fans engage with their favorite sports.

For the month of June, we focused on AI in Sports, shining our spotlight on some truly innovative AI based solutions. Covering different areas — player performance & training, injury prevention, broadcasting & media management — we look at the many ways that AI is reshaping the games we love while.

5 podcast episodes with founders that are really making a difference:

Want to get featured in our content? 

Get in touch to find out about our partnership options.

Top News

Digital merchandise is definitely a thing for Nike who take their .swoosh NFTs into Fortnite

Wimbledon is looking to reach younger / newer audiences by bringing a digital experience into Fortnite

Wimbledon are also giving us some AI love by partnering with IBM to provide AI commentary at the event

More AI talk as NTT adds ChatGPT tech and bike digital twins to the Tour de France 2023

More Digital Worlds / Metaverse talk, for the MLB, The Open, the LPGA & the Tennis Hall of Fame

The European Games brought some genuine innovation to multi-sport events by providing athletes with Distributed Media Rights & NFT Medals

Reimagine Football (KNVB + AFC Ajax + Johan Cruijff ArenA + Eredivisie + City Football Group)  announced the winners to their Fan Experience challenge

Tech Licensing is the future for Buzzer (shuts down) & Fan Controlled Football (cancels season 3) after $100m combined raise

Top Deals: Betr $35m, MVP Index $20m, Project Admission$3.2m, Arena Undisclosed

Top Acquisitions: Candy Digital & Palm NFT Studio merge, Better Collective Acq Playmaker HQ, Sports Info Solutions Acq Blueprint Stats

From our channels

STX Weekly Ep 63: Michael Jordan and Kevin Durant backed BUZZER shuts down, Metaverse experiences for MLB, UFC The Open & more

STX Weekly Ep 62: Nike takes digital merch into Fortnite, Wimbledon adds AI commentary & more

Podcast #170 ScorePlay: Reinventing sports analytics and entertainment with Computer Vision

Vodcast #166 Griiip: Israeli company changing the Motorsport experience

All our podcasts are now available as Vodcasts on our YouTube channel. We will be publishing new episodes and back catalogue from the year simultaneously so there’s plenty to watch.

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