Guide to introduce the digital world in sport

The digital transformation that the world of sport in general, and of soccer in particular, has undergone is already a fact. New technologies such as GPS, drones, Apps, new software with video analysis or virtual simulators have become the main tools of football clubs and their coaches, and have almost completely changed sports training techniques.

Guide to introduce the digital world in sport

Photo: coach-plus.com

All these new technologies, located both in the band, on the pitch and in the player's own body, are already part of the daily routine of teams as important as Real Madrid or Barça, both favorite teams on the internet in betting on the next Champions League.

Footbonaut and Helix

Footbonaut and Helix are currently two tools widely used by professional football teams, specifically by the coach of the German team Hoffenheim in their training. In the case of Helix, it is a virtual simulator whose function is to train and improve peripheral vision. This 180-degree simulator helps the footballer to recognize who his teammates are on the pitch and can make the best decision on the pitch. On the other hand, Footbonaut is a large box (20 square meters) where soccer players practice shooting balls. This device has four machines that throw the balls to the player with different speeds and trajectories, in such a way that the player must receive the ball and send it to the screen where it is indicated.

Use of drones in the women's team

“In the end you have more information and of better quality to analyze your team and the rivals. The conclusions are better. Your decisions are more grounded, ”says the national women's soccer coach, Jorge Vilda, who has begun to introduce drone devices in his training. In addition Vilda also works with revolutionary WyScout video analysis software , an international platform with an image bank and data of all the matches, with which you can cut and edit any of the frames.

For Vidal, the irruption of new digital technologies improves the training process and allows perfecting plays to unsuspected limits: “you can train previously unimaginable match situations. It is easier to highlight the details so that the message fits more easily in the team ”.

GPS have become essential

CatapultSports or STATSports have already improved the quality of training for many international soccer clubs. Both GPS systems are responsible for collecting, analyzing and processing data as important in the game as speed, heart rate, distances traveled. All this information is of vital relevance for coaches and technicians who with it can get to exploit the maximum performance in their players and even optimize their training techniques. Through wearables with devices that measure this data and relay the information to tablets, smartphones and computers, the technical team obtains all the necessary information. A member of the scientific sports corps of the English team Newcastle, Jamie Harley, says: "we can know who is at their peak of performance and it is more likely that they will play at a better level.