Sports Analytics Innovation SummitWinning in Sports Through Performance Analysis & Data Analytics September 12 & 13, Boston 2013

Who went?Coaches, General Managers, Sports Analysts, Technologists

Key questionsHow do you engage Coaches?How do you create value based on the Data?

Two tracksOn Field AnalyticsOff Field Analytics

The pursuit of innovation in the English Premier LeagueTony StrudwickHead of Sports Science at Manchester United

The pursuit of innovation in the English Premier LeagueTony StrudwickHead of Sports Science at Manchester United

Psychology of Sport

Analytics may not capture a player's main strengths or weaknesses

For example ...One players greatest skill may be to motivate other players. If players are not physically or mentally ready to perform then data is a waste of time.

Other Problems ...

In the last 20 years, sport science has been oversubscribed yet has underdelivered.

Most coaches feel sport science brings no value to their team.The problem is perceived as the inability of data practitioners to communicate actionable metrics.

Analytics do not always explain human psychological principles because ...Humans are not rationalHumans are risk adverseUnder pressure humans will fail

Analytics must drive decisions and actions or else they're worthless.Need more graphical representations, not excel spreadsheetsEmphasis on real time apps, real time data & analysis, real time decisionsCatapult Team Tracking System

Decisions that are now well supported by analytics ...Managing training of new playersAnalytics & reports for chief execs

Display relevant relationships between these variables:Age GroupPositionAve body MassCumulative minutes trained

Example49% of squad is 29+ years oldHigher number of injuries coming from this groupDuring November, December, January intensity training goes down, injury goes up

Goals of analysisIncrease player availability and individual performanceRemain injury freeMaintain high performance over 45 games per season, 4 games per week

Using social media to search for the next Olympic teamTroy FlanaganPerformance Director, US Ski & Snowbaord Assn.

Questions?

Using social media to search for the next Olympic teamTroy FlanaganPerformance Director, US Ski & Snowbaord Assn.

Using social media to search for the next Olympic teamTroy FlanaganPerformance Director, US Ski & Snowbaord Assn.

Goal of program is to transfer ex-gymnasts into aerial skiing for the 2018 Olympics3 years to reach the podium ...

The US Ski Team created a Facebook app through create.it for finding talent

Kids submit their best tricks to win an invitation to tryout camp If theres not a tangible reward people won't participate

Questions?Using Visual Analytics in Performance AnalysisKirk GoldsberyVisiting scholar at Harvard, now at ESPN

Using Visual Analytics in Performance AnalysisKirk GoldsberyVisiting scholar at Harvard, now at ESPN

What are Analytics?

Analytics are Reasoning Artifacts … things we use to make decisions.New Data, New Analytics, Same reasoning

Maps Maps show spatial structure and patterns Maps provoke spatial reasoningMaps work for all sports

We’re visual creaturesand when we see something attractive we want to consume it

It takes time to make something that people want to consume. If you were to ask Faulkner how he writes … he doesn't just write, he considers how to frame the story first

How do you harness spatial science?Sports are spatialSports are visualAnalytics are not spatial or visual

Spatial AnalysisVisualize patterns and quantify information

Visual AnalyticsTranslate raw game data into useful information

ExampleAll LeBron James shots for the last 5 seasonsSpatial map of shooting patternsGood for engaging the athleteGood for finding players that are similar or different

Visualizations can handle big dataAs strategic devicesAs communicative devices

Two different approaches to visualizationsExploratoryConfirmatoryDepends on audience

Sensorslead to quantitative spatial research questions

However, provoking spatial reasoning may lead to more questions than it answers

Find a question to try to answer and attack it

Questions?Staying Connected: The Rise in Fitness DataChris GlodeGM, MapMyFitness

Staying Connected: The Rise in Fitness DataChris GlodeGM, MapMyFitness

MapMyRunTeam of 100 split between Austin & DenverConnected Fitness - social, fun, simple, effective, and rewarding

Users40% Aspirational 45% Recreational 15% Fanatical

160 million workouts logged in 2013Team working toward less friction in the app experience

Growth driven by Smart phonesWireless technology & reduced friction - seamless data downloadCloud computingWearables… reduction in hardware costsObesity epidemic in US

People use MapMyRun to “outsource their willpower” Friends in the system keep other users more active via notifications

Techniques for engagement:Games: people keep coming back for competitionGames are considered a “jedi mind trick” by MapMyRun, effectively manipulating users to returnRoute art: motivated users who were otherwise uninterested in social

Practical applications of fitness dataCorporate wellnessTrainer driven programming, tailored to the individual based on real, recent and new fitness data. Total accountability

Opportunity via tons of information mined on the geospatial frontExample: advertising to women along certain routes, etc.

FutureWoven wearablesAdvanced activity detectionUbiquity of incentives to track fitnessiOS7 - Support for passive all day activity tracking in background when app is inactive

Questions?

Using GIS to study Spatio-Temporal Patterns in SportDamien DemajGeospatial Product Engineer at Esri

Using GIS to study Spatio-Temporal Patterns in SportDamien DemajGeospatial Product Engineer at Esri

Space and time go hand in hand in sport

Mapping a tennis match

ExampleWho: Federer v MurrayData: 1706 spatial points3D GIS & streaming video

The serve: the most important shotSpeed & spin: the most important metricsVariation is key: mapping unpredictability is important

Approach1. K Means algorithm - looks for natural clusters in the

data, balls that are close in space but also have a similar attribute

2. Create euclidean lines & calculate large mean distance

3. Tag the most important points in the match

4. Add a feature overlay – Pseudo Realism – putting players back in their environment

Questions?Smart SoccerQaisar HassonjeeVP Innovation, adidas

Nelson RodriquezMLS EVP Competition & Game Operations

Smart SoccerQaisar HassonjeeVP Innovation, adidas

Nelson RodriquezMLS EVP Competition & Game Operations

How is technology enabling sports analytics?

WearablesMultifunctions, always connected, smart/aware devices that measure me

Enabled by advances in sensor technology, algorithms, data science

Everyone from startups to established brands are developing tools

What are you looking for? What kind of sensors to develop, ease of use

Lots of fear in the industry... but lots of copycats once something works

The adidas Team SystemOpen platform… more sensors over time can be added to the platform

Measures Heart rate, Speed, Distance, Location, Acceleration

100 shirts

30 pods

4 ipads

19 MLS clubs are now using the system - bell curve of adoption

iPad App Most people don’t look at all 20-30 parameters, just the top 2-3How is the information actionable?How is pre-season trianing improving the fitness of my athletes?

ResultsAthletes appreciate and want to use the technologyTool can extend careers and improve performanceInjuries are down 2% this year

FutureDrop the tech into the academy programs & build a national data set of kids & analytics using the system

Commercial opportunities, super fan stuff, fantasy teams, etc.

Questions?USA Volleyball

Anton WillertTechnical Coordinator/Tem ManagerUS Men’s National Team

Thanks for visualizing