The landscape of football is poised on the brink of a significant transformation as artificial intelligence (AI) technology continues to make inroads into the sport. Renowned data expert Lee Mooney, formerly head of data insights at City Football Group and now founder of MUD Analytics, remarked on the potential of AI, stating, “It’s totally feasible that an artificial intelligence (AI) agent could simulate more football in 24 hours than has ever been played professionally.” This statement underlines a growing trend in the integration of sophisticated data technologies within sports.
Among the most notable developments is Liverpool’s collaboration with Google DeepMind, aimed at refining their corner-kick strategy through AI. Mooney indicated that clubs could eventually train AI systems to simulate matches against specific opponents, testing strategic approaches based on individual player characteristics. “You could set up to play Manchester City, train the AI agent to understand how they play and what their individual strengths and weaknesses are, and then play the game millions of times,” he said.
The advancement of player tracking data has paved the way for this innovative approach, enabling clubs to model games and strategies in a risk-free environment. Mooney suggested that AI could also help coaches make informed decisions during matches by identifying player fatigue or suboptimal decision-making.
While the potential of AI in football is vast, its implementation requires a stable leadership vision and adequate funding, characteristics that can be elusive in the footballing world. The Athletic has gathered insights indicating that a growing percentage of football professionals foresee transformative changes due to AI, with 65 per cent of scouts in the Premier League and Football League believing it will affect their roles within five years.
AI’s growing role is not merely limited to coaching strategies; it is also revolutionising talent scouting. Teams have begun employing large language models to process vast amounts of scouting data, reducing the need for intensive manual reviews. Some clubs believe that AI could eventually replace traditional scouting roles, a sentiment echoed by an anonymous recruitment source who predicts AI may fulfil these functions within two years.
However, Mooney contested the notion that AI would entirely replace human scouts, stating there are still many nuances in player assessment that machines may not capture. “There are things models can’t see or they have wide confidence bands,” he elaborated, highlighting the vital role of human observation in evaluating critical qualities like a player’s comportment under pressure.
In line with emerging AI technologies, Barcelona’s Barca Innovation Hub has positioned itself as a pioneer, investing in firms that leverage AI for injury prevention and player health management. General Manager Albert Mundet articulated the club’s ambition to harmonise advanced biomedical data with AI to enhance player performance and longevity, asserting, “The next wave is biomedical data, combining genomics data and other markers in the body.”
One significant investment is in Omniscope, a tech bio company that is pioneering techniques for understanding the immune systems of athletes. CEO Vijay Vaswani spoke to The Athletic about how AI can revolutionise sports medicine by predicting health risks and managing injury recovery through cell-based analyses. He claimed the technology has the potential to "significantly enhance sports medicine and improve athlete health management."
The rapidly evolving dynamics of AI applications in football also encapsulate data analytics firms like StatsBomb, which have illustrated how profound data integration has already shifted the approach to recruitment and tactical training within professional clubs. Founder Ted Knutson noted the difficulty in shifting traditional football practices. Despite initial resistance, he observed a gradual acceptance of data analytics amongst clubs, spurred by clear success stories.
As football ventures deeper into the realm of AI and data analytics, the dichotomy between human expertise and machine efficiency presents both opportunities and challenges. The technological advancements could reshape recruitment protocols, coaching strategies, and even player health management, fundamentally altering how the game is played and understood. As Mooney summarized, with the emergence of these technologies, the intersection of data science and football is becoming a critical frontier, and those unwilling to adapt may fall behind in an increasingly competitive landscape.
Source: Noah Wire Services