Revolutionizing Sports Broadcasting: The Power of AI Autocasting
About this episode
Revolutionizing Sports Broadcasting: The Power of AI Autocasting
We collectively showcase Spiideo's innovative sports technology, emphasizing its impact on broadcasting and video analysis across various levels of sports. It highlights how Spiideo's AI-powered camera systems enable automated production, known as autocasting, to make games accessible that might otherwise lack viewership, from youth leagues to semi-professional tiers. The Deep Dive also illustrate the use of this technology for performance analysis, allowing coaches and players to review and improve strategies through features like multi-angle views, instant replays, and automated data tracking. Furthermore, we discuss the monetization potential of autocasting through live streaming and sponsor promotion, revolutionizing how content is consumed and shared within the sports industry.
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OK, let's unpack this. You know, we often think of
sports as this realm of raw human talent, grit and passion.
But beneath the surface, especially in the world of
sports video, there's a quiet, profound revolution happening.
It's driven by cutting edge tech.
Yeah, definitely. Today we're taking a deep dive
into that very revolution, specifically how artificial
intelligence is fundamentally transforming, well, everything.
How we watch games, how athletes are developed, even how entire
leagues operate. It's huge.
And this deep dive? It's really all about a company
called Speedio and their ambitious mission to capture,
analyze and broadcast nearly every single moment in sports,
from the biggest pro arenas right down to the local training
fields. And it truly is a monumental
shift because you know, this isn't just about the top tier
professional leagues, the ones with multibillion dollar
broadcasting deals you're used to seeing on TV, right?
What we're witnessing is the radical democratization of
access and insights. It's happening across all levels
of play and across a remarkable range of sports too.
Like. What kind of sports?
We're talking more than 15 different sports currently,
benefiting everything from, you know, global giants like soccer
to the intense action of ice hockey, basketball, American
football, even sports like handball are getting in on this.
Wow. OK, So this transformation, at
its core, it's reshaping the entire sports ecosystem.
It's making it more visible, more insightful, and ultimately,
you know, far more inclusive than ever before.
So to truly understand the scale of what we're discussing here,
let's start by looking at the fundamental problem.
What problem is a technology like Speedo actually setting out
to solve, right? Think about traditional sports
video production. It's notoriously expensive,
right? Incredibly labor intensive and
often it's just plain limited in scope.
If you're not one of the absolute top leagues or teams,
the ones with massive budgets, getting high quality footage of
your games or even your crucial training sessions, well,
historically that's been a massive hurdle.
Yeah, near impossible for many. Imagine trying to capture every
youth soccer practice across a sprawling Academy.
You might have several teams training at the same time on
different fields. Or think about every single semi
pro game in a regional league. Hundreds of matches might happen
over a weekend. You just couldn't cover it
traditionally. Exactly.
Historically, providing comprehensive, high quality
video for these lower tiers has been either an impossible
logistical feat or simply too cost prohibitive.
You couldn't justify hiring camera crews, buying complex
broadcast gear, or having editing suites for every single
event. And that's precisely the void
that Speedo fills with its foundational solution, an
automated video recording system.
OK, automated. How does that work?
At its core, this system is both AI powered and entirely cloud
based, so it's designed to record the entire field of play,
capturing every detail and crucially, without needing a
single camera operator on site. No cameraman needed.
What this means in practice is you get constant high quality
footage that's available instantly.
It's always there, always capturing the full scope of the
action, maybe even from multiple angles if you set it up that
way. And this innovative approach,
it's truly opened up entirely new avenues for sports
organizations. For instance, Patrick Olson,
he's the Co founder and CEO at Speedo.
He pointed out how this system let's teams and leagues that
don't have those traditional big television contracts stream
their matches directly to fans. So direct to fan streaming.
Exactly. And this doesn't just increase
visibility, which is great, but it also opens up entirely new
revenue streams for organizations that, well,
previously just couldn't monetize their content like
this. That's a fascinating point about
new revenue, but I'm also intrigued by something else you
touched on Victoria Rich, who's Director of Operations for the
NWSL. Yeah, the National Women's
Soccer League, they use Speedio, right?
She suggested AI could even help players avoid injuries.
How does that work? How does comprehensive data and
footage gathered automatically actually help with injury
prevention? That seems like such a complex
challenge. It's a really crucial
application and it highlights the depth of insight this tech
provides. See, when you have constant high
quality footage of every training session and every game,
and you combine that with real time data, say from Speedo auto
data which tracks player movements and stats well,
coaches and medical staff gain an unprecedented level of
visibility. So they can see more than just
the obvious stuff. Way more.
They can analyze a player's bio mechanics over time, You know,
identify subtle changes in movement patterns that might
indicate fatigue or an increased risk of injury.
They can even review specific moments where maybe an athlete
landed awkwardly or made a risky play that didn't result in
injury then but showed a vulnerability.
So proactive rather than reactive.
Exactly. Traditionally that kind of deep
analysis was limited to maybe a few high profile incidents, or
it just relied on a coach's memory which can be faulty.
With the system, they can proactively identify trends,
give targeted feedback to correct potentially harmful
movements, and tailor training loads to mitigate risk.
It really shifts the focus from just reacting to injuries after
they happen to actively trying to prevent them in the first
place. OK, that's a powerful potential
benefit. So to achieve all this, Speedo
isn't just one thing, is it? You mentioned auto data, the
cameras. Right.
It's a whole family of products designed to integrate
seamlessly. You have the core Speedo camera
systems. Obviously these include
versatile options like the portable Smartcam 3.
Portable OK, so you can take it anywhere.
Pretty much it's lightweight, easy to deploy, packed with AI
designed to bring that high quality automated capture to any
location, whether it's a remote practice field or, you know, a
temporary tournament setup. Got it.
And then for the analysis part. That's where Speedyo Perform
comes in. It's their dedicated software
for really in depth post game and post training analysis.
This is where coaches and players really dig in and
dissect every moment. OK.
And for broadcasting? For broadcasting, there's
Speedyo Play that's designed for organizations looking to produce
a professional live stream of their games.
Right, like Patrick Olson mentioned.
Exactly, and if they want to go direct to consumer build their
own subscription service, perhaps they offer Speedyo OTT
over the top streaming. OTT OK.
Then for sharing video seamlessly across an
organization, maybe between a club's first team and its youth
Academy, or across a whole league, they have Spideo League
Exchange. So everyone's on the same page
using the same footage. Precisely.
And underpinning a lot of the deeper insights is Speedo auto
data, providing those real time statistical insights directly
integrated with the video, so you see the action and the
relevant data side by side. Wow camera systems perform for
analysis, play for broadcast, OTT league exchange auto data.
Yeah, each component works together.
It creates this really cohesive and comprehensive solution for
the entire video workflow in sports, from capture to analysis
to distribution. That brings us neatly to a much
broader concept, maybe even more revolutionary, that really ties
all these elements together. Auto casting.
It sounds like it's so much more than just automated recording.
It feels like it's about fundamentally transforming the
very nature of sports broadcasting as we know it.
Like a real shift in how we consume sports content.
That's a great way to put it, Auto casting.
Todd Patton, he's the VP of marketing at Spadeo.
He defines it as the process of using automation for all
production elements for sports broadcast at a large scale
across all levels. All production elements, so not
just the camera. Right.
Think graphics replays, potentially even switching
camera angles automatically. And the key is at large scale
across all levels and to really grasp the significance.
Patton draws this powerful historical parallel.
He suggests auto casting is as revolutionary for sports media
as ESP NS pivotal move from tape delayed to live broadcasts back
in 1979. Wow, that's a bold claim.
Live ESPN changed everything. It really did.
Before ESPN, most sports broadcasts were, you know,
highlights or delayed replays shown days later.
Live, constant sports coverage was absolutely ground breaking.
Auto casting, in a similar vein, brings live, professional
quality coverage to games that would otherwise be completely
unseen by a wider audience. So it's making the invisible
visible essentially. Exactly.
Bringing them to life for fans, coaches, players, scouts, people
who previously had zero access. And here's where it gets really
interesting. Patent identifies 4 key trends
that are truly driving this transformation.
OK, let's hear him. First, there's universal
accessibility. The long term vision here, which
is rapidly becoming reality, is that eventually every single
game played from your local club match right up to entire
federations across different sports will be accessible
online. Every single game.
That sounds huge. It is, and it's not just a
futuristic dream. It's already happening at scale.
We're seeing examples like the Gothia Cup, that's the world's
largest youth football tournament.
In Sweden, they use this tech to make sure every single game is
captured. Similarly, you've got Ringing
your Sports in Switzerland, MLSNXTP Row in North America,
even a smaller Portuguese club like Frozen's SC.
They're actively ensuring every one of their games is captured
and available to fans, parents, scouts, you name it.
So it dramatically expands the universe of watchable sports.
Totally providing this vital window into countless athletic
journeys that were previously just invisible.
It's an infrastructural shift, really, using AI and cloud
computing to make what was logistically impossible now
routine. OK.
That's trend 1. Universal accessibility.
What's next? 2nd is the democratization of
video analysis. Traditionally, you know
sophisticated video analysis tools, dedicated analysts.
That was exclusively for elite teams with massive budget.
Right, only the top clubs could afford it.
Exactly. Only the top players and coaches
got those deep insights from comprehensive game footage.
But with automatic camera systems like Speedos, teams and
leagues automatically get both panoramic views and broadcast
style views of their games instantly available in the cloud
for analysis using tools like Speedo Perform.
So it's not just the recording, it's the analysis tools too.
Yes, which means advanced video analysis is no longer reserved
for the elite. It's becoming affordable and
accessible at every tier of sport, from pro academies down
to youth clubs. And the impact of that?
It's profound. It improves the on field
product, accelerates player development across the board,
and ultimately it raises the overall standard of play across
entire leagues. When every coach and every
player has access to this level of insight, the whole game gets
better. That makes sense.
Better coaching, better players. Though the challenge, of course,
is making sure coaches at all levels are actually equipped to
use this data effectively, not just get overwhelmed by it.
True. OK, Trend 3.
The third trend is about new content rights.
We're seeing a significant shift where media companies are now
starting to acquire content rights for mid level sports
globally. This was almost unheard of
before because traditional production costs were just too
high. So leagues that weren't
attractive before suddenly become viable properties.
Exactly, and Ring Your Sports with their RAD platform in
Switzerland is a perfect example.
This platform shows what's possible when you combine data
and video through auto casting. It uses automated streaming for
football fans, but with enhancements Like what?
Like automated broadcast graphics?
Think real time player stats popping up, score updates,
lineups shown automatically based on preset run sheets, plus
automatic camera movements that intelligently follow the action.
So it looks professional even if it's automated.
Yes, and beyond the live stream, it integrates video ads,
creating new revenue streams. And crucially, highlights are
automatically packaged and shared across different channels
almost instantly. Instant highlights.
That's it's big. Huge.
It creates this rich, dynamic content ecosystem for previously
underserved leagues, letting them attract viewers and
sponsors that were just out of reach before.
OK, accessibility, democratization of analysis, new
content rights. What's the 4th trend?
And finally, the 4th trend is about evolving consumption
patterns. Modern fans, especially younger
generations, they're moving beyond just watching a linear
full 90 minute game from start to finish.
Yeah, attention spans are different, more platforms.
Exactly. They're seeking more
interactive, efficient, engaging experiences, often on mobile
devices across multiple platforms.
This shift is enabled by features like automatic
highlights, distilling hours of footage into bite sized,
engaging clips almost instantly. Perfect for social media or
quick recaps. Meeting fans where they are.
Precisely, plus interactive graphics providing deeper
context. Real time info overlaid on the
video, letting fans explore stats or tactical setups
themselves. And post production automation
is critical here too, enhancing discoverability and engagement
for fans who prefer those shorter, more dynamic format.
It's about making every moment discoverable and shareable.
OK, those 4 trends, accessibility analysis for all
new rights, changing consumption paint a really clear picture.
So what does this all mean for that traditional sports pyramid?
You know, the hierarchy. We're only the very top pro
leagues get the spotlight and the broadcast money.
It sounds like this isn't just for the pros, it's genuinely
shaking up the whole structure. Precisely auto casting
significantly expands the possibilities across all four
tiers of the sports broadcasting ecosystem.
It's not just moving resources around, it's genuinely growing
the pie. Can you break down those tiers
for us? Sure.
So Tier 1 is what you typically think of the elite NFL, Premier
League, NBA, La Liga, MLB. Huge viewership, billions in AD
revenue. They invest millions in manual,
state-of-the-art production with tons of cameras, full crews.
Right, the Giants. For them, auto casting isn't
about replacing their main broadcasts, it's more about
supplementing them. Maybe for closed door
friendlies, Academy games, minor league fixtures where they still
need high quality footage for analysis or internal use but
don't need the full broadcast setup.
It's cost effective coverage for all their activities.
OK, makes sense for tier one. What about Tier 2?
Tier 2 covers other established professional leagues and teams.
Think the EFL Championship in England, Major League Soccer in
the US, top level college sports.
They still attract major broadcasters, get significant
revenue, but definitely less lucrative rates than Tier 1.
Still big, but not stratospheric.
Exactly here, auto casting can really optimize production
costs, enabling more games within those leagues to be
broadcast professionally without those prohibitive expenses of
full cruise for every single match.
So more coverage within Tier 2 is possible now Tier 3.
Tier 3 is worth things get really interesting.
This is semi pro sports, clubs and leagues, professional youth
academies, competitions like the UEFA Youth League and European
football historically. There's plenty of passionate
interest here. Yeah, parents, scouts, dedicated
fans. Right, but it's been super rare
for them to attract major broadcasters.
The commercial ROI just wasn't there for traditional production
models. This is where auto casting
becomes truly transformative, making widespread, professional
looking coverage actually viable.
This feels like we're the biggest change happens.
It's a massive shift, yeah. And then you have Tier 4, which
is the grassroots level, youth clubs, high school competitions,
amateur sports. These events usually draw small
local crowds, mostly parents, friends, family.
Virtually 0 appeal for traditional broadcasters because
the cost per viewer is just way too high.
OK, so auto casting serves all four, but in different ways.
Exactly. And what's crucial to understand
is that this doesn't really cut into the existing broadcast pie.
It expands the pie. It makes thousands, maybe
millions of games accessible that were completely untelevised
before. Creating new markets,
essentially. It creates entirely new return
on investment opportunities for those lower tiers, tiers 3 and
4, especially by drastically cutting the cost and complexity
of production. This means these organizations
can now generate revenue through subscriptions, sponsorships,
pay-per-view and critically, provide invaluable exposure for
their players. Exposure is key at those levels.
Absolutely. Think about that Ryan Reynolds
example, the movie star who Co owns Rexum AFC.
Right in the English 5th tier. He publicly aired his
frustration with their league, the Panorama National League,
because they weren't allowing domestic or international
streaming of most matches. The league's media partner just
didn't see the ROI to broadcast more than maybe 30 games a year
traditionally. So most games were just unseen.
Exactly, and this is where auto casting offers such a clear
solution. A club like Wrexham, maybe they
could afford their own crew now, but many others in that league
or the league itself? No way.
Too expensive? But with automated fixed camera
systems, a cloud based production platform, all 24
teams in a league like that could easily auto cast all their
home matches, maybe even away games if the stadiums have
compatible systems. And what would that look like?
It might not have the 20 camera set up of a Premier League game,
sure, but it can still feature professional graphics, automated
cameras tracking the action intelligently, even remote
commentators calling the game from anywhere.
So it's a proper broadcast, just produced differently.
Yes, and the key is it provides a broadcast where none existed
before. It's the alternative to 0
coverage. It brings unprecedented
visibility to sports that desperately need it, unlocking
new fan bases, scouting opportunities and talent pools
that were previously just hidden.
That's a powerful point about expanding the pie and unlocking
potential, but let's shift gears now.
Let's focus on the individuals right there on the field, the
coaches and the players. How is this technology directly
impacting player and team development day-to-day?
Yeah, this is where it's really practical.
And to help us understand this, we're going to dive into some
incredible insights from Andreas Jorgson.
He's currently the first team assistant coach at Southampton
FC. Right.
And he's got serious pay to grade. 15 years at Malmo in
Sweden, spells at Brentford, Arsenal, specialized in set
pieces, individual development. He really knows his stuff.
Exactly. His perspective on using video
is invaluable. Absolutely.
And Andreas Jorbson provides some truly profound insights.
One of the first things he emphasizes is how video provides
an objective truth in discussions.
Objective truth meaning. Meaning, when coaches talk to
players, or even when coaches debate among themselves about
tactics or performance, emotions and biases can easily cloud
judgment, right? Especially in the heat of the
moment. Sure, adrenaline's pumping.
Exactly. Adrenaline driven reactions can
lead to misinterpretations, but video it removes those
immediate, maybe emotional biases.
It allows for calm, reflective analysis.
It shows exactly what happened. At the guesswork out.
And crucially, Jorkson says it gives players ownership of their
own self reflection and analysis instead of just relying on a
coach's immediate, subjective take.
They can see it for themselves. It fosters deeper understanding
and accountability that objective truth is just a
powerful tool for constructive dialogue and learning.
OK, so it grounds conversations in reality.
What else? He calls Spidey OA real game
changer specifically for training sessions.
Now competitive game days you often have some kind of footage
even if it's basic right. But the real problem
historically in youth, semi pro, even many pro setups, has always
been the lack of comprehensive footage from training.
Yeah, practice is often go unrecorded.
Might have no footage at all, maybe limited angles that miss,
crucial off ball stuff or fragmented play if say the
defense is working on 1/2 of the pitch and the offense on the
other. Things a traditional single
cameraman would struggle to capture.
Totally. SPDU solves this by ensuring
there's always footage covering every square meter of the pitch
instantly available in the cloud, and this quick review
capability is absolutely crucial for training.
Why is speed so important there? Because it allows for immediate,
precise feedback that can directly impact the very next
training session or even drills within the same session.
You can show a player a specific movement or tactical error just
minutes after it occurs. That allows for rapid correction
and reinforcement of learning. The feedback loop is incredibly
tight. Instant feedback, instant
correction. Got it.
He also specializes in set pieces, right?
Yes, and he highlights Speedo's transformative impact there.
He jokingly calls set pieces the ugly duckling of football.
Why is that? Because they're incredibly
impactful in deciding games, but they typically get very little
dedicated pitch time and training schedules.
Maybe 10-15 minutes here and there.
So you have to maximize that limited.
Time, exactly Video becomes essential to maximize learning
from those short, intense sessions, and a critical
advantage of Speedo here is its ability to pan and zoom across
the entire pitch view. As opposed to.
As opposed to traditional broadcast video, which often
zooms in tightly just on the ball taker during a corner or
free kick. Right, you miss everything else
happening. You miss the crucial player
movements, the defensive setups, the coordinated runs away from
the ball. Spidey O's panoramic view
captures all that intricate detail, making it invaluable for
perfecting these critical, often match winning moments.
Coaches can die timing shape individual assignments with
unparalleled clarity. That makes total sense for set
pieces. What about during the actual
game? Live match video also plays a
big role in reducing in game biases.
Jorkson notes that having the ability to quickly review
situations calmly during a game or especially at halftime on a
tablet, it helps remove those emotional biases that inevitably
develop during high pressure moments.
So instead of yelling based on gut feeling.
Exactly. Instead of reacting solely on
instinct or frustration, coaches can take a breath, look at the
objective reality of the video clip, and then give much more
constructive, fact based feedback to their players.
It grounds those sideline reactions.
OK, that's about using the video itself.
What about the art of giving feedback with video?
Is there a magic ratio of positive to negative clips?
Yeah, the feedback process. There's that common belief, you
hear it a lot about needing a 5.1 positive to negative clip
ratio to keep player morale high.
But Jorgson emphasizes that the delivery and, perhaps most
importantly, the trust built between the coach and player are
far more paramount than just counting clips.
A coach's care, their tone, their relationship with the
player that matters more. So it's how you say it, not just
what you show. Precisely, he says.
Positive clips are incredibly powerful because the visual
speaks for itself. The player sees exactly what
they did well, reinforcing good habits.
It's clear it's motivating. Corrective clips, though,
they're more challenging. Simply showing a mistake doesn't
automatically tell a player how to fix it.
Right, just showing the problem isn't the solution.
Exactly. Jorkson stresses that corrective
clips require more explanation, maybe drawing diagrams on the
screen, pausing it, talking through alternative solutions.
If you just show corrections, he says, you also need to provide
clear guidance on how it should look or how to do it better.
Otherwise, it can just be demotivating or confusing.
The challenge is providing actionable solutions, not just
identifying errors. That's a great distinction.
What about when and where to give this feedback?
Big groups one-on-one during play.
Yeah, optimizing the setting and timing is another delicate
balance Jergsen discusses. He points out it's often a trade
off between time efficiency and learning efficiency.
OK, explain that. Well, full squad meetings in a
big room are time efficient, right?
You communicate general game plans or broad tactical
principles to everyone at once. Get the message out quickly.
But for in depth collaborative discussions about individual
performance or specific tactical nuances, Smaller groups or one
on ones sessions are far more learning efficient.
That's where real understanding happens.
More focused, more interaction. Exactly.
He really stresses that the individual meeting is absolutely
key to building that trust. We talked about and also
understanding a player's unique learning drivers, what motivates
them, what challenges they face, maybe even things off the pitch
affecting. Them building that relationship.
Right. And then during actual play on
the training pitch or during a game, coaches have to be careful
not to interrupt a player's flow state.
Don't overload the mid action. Correct simple confirmations
like a quick good pass or keep pushing.
Those can be given on the go from the sideline without
disrupting things. But complex corrections?
The kind that require a player to stop, process new
information, and adjust their mental model?
Those are much better saved for natural breaks in play,
halftime, or ideally in the video room after the session.
Know your moment. Jerkson calls it the art of
coaching, knowing precisely when and how to intervene to maximize
impact without hindering immediate performance.
Yeah, it's insightful. He also mentioned fostering self
reflection in players. How does video help there?
Yeah, that's critical for a long term development.
He observes that in traditional football culture it can be easy
for players to kind of hide in the collective.
The learning process can be very coach driven.
Players just execute instructions.
Less individual accountability. Sometimes, yeah.
Spidey O empowers players by giving them direct access to
every training session and every game they participate in, right
on their own devices. So they can watch themselves
anytime. Anytime this removes the excuse
that they didn't have access to the footage and it really pushes
them to become more self driven learners.
It gives them the agency to review their own performance,
identify areas they want to improve, and maybe even come to
coaches with specific questions or clips.
It fosters a more collaborative and proactive learning
environment. Turning players into students of
their own game. Exactly.
Now on the topic of data like from Speedo auto data and it's
risks, Jorkson offers a really valuable warning.
No, data isn't always good. Well, he believes video analysis
is currently 10 or 15 or 25 years ahead of the data
acceptance in football. Meaning videos more mature, more
trusted than pure stats. We kind of.
He needs that. Football is such a random game,
and while systems can generate tons of data points, sprints,
touches, passes, distances, very every few of those isolated data
points are truly relevant to development or genuinely
predictive of future performance on their own.
So data without context is dangerous.
That's the risk. He cautions that the biggest
danger with data, especially in youth football, is using it to
prove existing biases. A coach might think they have
all the answers about a player and then selectively pick out
data points that confirm their preconceived notions, rather
than using data objectively to challenge their own assumptions.
Information bias. Exactly.
It's a real challenge to extract meaningful, actionable insights
from the sheer volume of available data without falling
into that trap. So coaches need self-awareness
about their own biases, too. Oh, massively.
Jorkson considers coach self-awareness massive.
He points out that in football, a coach's authority is often
taken for granted and success, particularly winning games, can
falsely validate their methods, making them resistant to change
or critical self reflection. If it ain't broke, don't fix
this mentality, even if it could be better.
Right. True development, he argues,
both for the team and for the coach themself, comes from
constantly questioning one's own biases, being rigorously self
reflective, and genuinely seeking out and considering
opinions and feedback from others.
That includes players, assistant coaches, analysts, everyone
creating an open learning environment for the whole staff.
That takes humility. Does he look outside football
for ideas? Oh, massively, as he puts it.
He draws inspiration from all over, showing a really holistic
approach to coaching where he looks to the legendary UCLA
basketball coach John Wooden. Not for basketball tactics,
obviously, but for leadership principles, organizational
methods, Wooden's meticulous planning, his emphasis on
fundamental execution. Jorkson adapts those ideas to
football training. Interesting basketball to
football. And from American football, he
actually gleans insights on blocking techniques.
Blocking. How does that apply?
For set pieces, how players position themselves, Createspace
shield opponents, the principles of leverage and body positioning
and blocking are highly relevant to creating advantages during
corners and free kicks. OK, I see the connection now.
Anywhere else? He even studies fighting sports
for principles of body balance, leverage, how players maintain
stability and control, and high contact situations on the pitch.
Wow, so he's constantly learning from everywhere.
Seems like it. It's about being relentlessly
curious and finding solutions and best practices wherever they
might exist, not just within the football bubble.
OK, one last nugget from Jorgson.
Any key advice for coaches just starting to use video analysis
more seriously? Yeah, he offered a really great
piece of advice, something he learned from a coaching course
that really stuck with him. The question was, what good does
the second best clip do? Hmm.
Meaning his take away is only show the perfect example to
deliver a clear message, even if you have to watch 100 clips to
find that single ideal one that perfectly illustrates the point
you want to make. Why only the perfect one?
Cognitive load showing imperfect examples or too many slight
variations can actually confuse the message and dilute the
learning. Clarity is absolutely paramount.
Keep it simple, keep it perfect. Less is more if it's the right
less. Exactly, and and related to
that, for team presentations, he advises keeping the total clip
time really short, ideally around 3 minutes maximum to
maintain focus. Don't blur the message by trying
to cram in too many examples. 3 minutes.
That's concise. Very He also notes that while
dialogue and discussion around clips can be beneficial in large
group settings, it really depends heavily on the group's
maturity level. Sometimes open discussion in a
big group can dilute the intended message or get
sidetracked if the coach doesn't manage it carefully.
So know your audience, keep it concise, and show the perfect
example. Great advice.
Really practical stuff. That's incredible insight into
the coaching mind. It really shows how this tech,
applied thoughtfully, isn't just about data.
It's reshaping the human interaction between coach and
player. Now let's zoom out again.
How is this technology fundamentally changing the
landscape for entire organizations, particularly at
the youth and college levels, where player development and
future opportunities are so critical?
Yeah, let's look at a concrete example.
The Syma Say Academy. They're a prominent youth soccer
organization out on Long Island. They're a really powerful case
study for how this tech is being used comprehensively at the
youth level. OK, what are they doing?
They've really embraced video. They deploy 3 cameras on every
single field. They use three per field where
one strategically placed at midfield, offering that wide
panoramic view. Great for seeing team shape and
tactics, and then one camera positioned behind each goal.
So you get the attacking and defending perspectives too.
Exactly, those end line cameras are crucial for analyzing build
up play in the final third and also for understanding defensive
presses from the opposition's viewpoint.
This multi angle capture let's coaches dissect every phase of
play with incredible detail. So the capture is comprehensive.
What about the tools they use? What's truly transformed it for
them are the automation tools within the Spidey O system.
SSA coaches can, for example, automatically highlight specific
players in the video to track their individual runs and
contributions throughout a session or game.
Follow one player easily. Yep.
They can overlay metrics showing the precise distance between
players, vital for understanding defensive compactness or
offensive spacing. And they can even put tactical
grids directly onto the pitch space in the video, making it
incredibly easy to pinpoint specific tactical issues, like
maybe gaps appearing in the back line or where press is breaking
down. Visualizing the tactics right on
the footage. Makes it super clear, and what's
fascinating for the players themselves is how the data
integration allows the kids to find just their own clips from a
session or game. Without waiting through hours of
team footage. Exactly.
Imagine being a young player trying to sift through all that.
It's tedious. This feature drastically reduces
the workload and crucially, keeps their attention focused.
It provides both visual and quantitative feedback for their
growth. They see what they did may be
linked to some key stats. It makes the learning process
far more engaging and effective than just watching whole games
or getting abstract instructions.
That personalized feedback loop again.
Right. But for Sue say, Academy Spidey
O extends way beyond just coaching analysis.
They live stream all of their events.
All of them practices too. Every practice, every scrimmage,
every competitive game. And this has been, in their
words, huge for family members who can't physically get to the
games. Maybe they travel for work, live
out of state, whatever. It keeps everyone connected and
involved, fostering a stronger community around the club.
That's a great benefit for the families.
Huge, but maybe the most impactful part is how they use
the platform to share game film directly with college coaches
across the country. For recruiting.
Exactly. This has completely transformed
their college Showcase events. Before Spidey O, these showcases
relied on college coaches physically traveling to attend.
Which limits who can see the players.
Right. Their first year running it with
Speedy O, they had about 80 teams participating and maybe 30
to 40 college coaches on site. Respectable, but limited.
Fast forward just five years, using Spidey O for live
streaming and film sharing, they hosted 260 teams at 150 coaches
on site, plus another 50 to 75 coaches watching via the live
stream from their offices across the country.
Wow, that's massive growth and exposure.
Incredible reach, and this is directly contributed to CSA
placing an astounding 80 to 90 kids in college soccer programs
every year, helping them match their academic goals with their
soccer aspirations. The USA staff finds that the
most rewarding aspect of their work.
Getting kids into college, that's impact.
It really democratizes the scouting process, opening doors
for talented players who might otherwise be overlooked by
colleges with smaller recruiting budgets or geographical
limitations. That's a.
Huge impact story. It really paints a picture of
how comprehensive this system is, far beyond just the X's and
O's. But this tech isn't standing
still, right? It's constantly evolving.
Definitely not, it's moving fast.
So let's look to the future Alexander Grimm.
He's the Co founder of Red Sports Network, the group using
this tech extensively in Switzerland, Austria, Germany.
He shares a pretty compelling vision for what's next in
automated sports production. Yeah, Grimm's vision is bold.
He aims to fully digitalize, professionalize and monetize
those Cure 2 and youth sports leagues, giving these often
underdeveloped leagues the stage and attention they really
deserve. Using this tech as the
foundation. Absolutely.
His network, Red Sports Network, already covers over 40 leagues
across those countries, producing all the content
remotely in the cloud without needing traditional on site
production trucks or large crews.
It's a testament to the scalability and cost efficiency
of this whole auto casting approach.
A small team in a central control room can manage
professional broadcast for dozens of live games happening
simultaneously. That's efficiency at scale.
So this raises the question, how is Spideio itself pushing the
boundaries? What are the latest innovations
in their automated production platform Spideoplay 2 Point O?
Right Spideoplay 2 point O introduced some really key
innovations. They showcase how they're
constantly enhancing autocasting capabilities.
It's worth digging into these. OK, let's break them down.
First, there's multi angle production.
The AI has gotten much smarter. It now tracks the game from
multiple camera perspectives simultaneously, and it
intelligently mimics the sophisticated movements and cuts
of well trained human camera operators.
So it feels more like a traditional broadcast.
Getting closer all the time. They have an auto director
feature that intelligently switches between these angles.
For example, in baseball it might smoothly transition from a
wide center field camera showing the whole diamond to a dynamic
close up on home plate. When the ball's put in play, it
knows when to follow the ball, when to focus on a player
reaction. It understands the game flow
better. Exactly.
And what's really impressive is that even a single Spideio
panoramic camera, one physical camera, can create multiple
virtual output. Virtual outputs from 1 camera,
yeah. From one high resolution wide
angle capture the system can generate say a fixed wide view
like for tactical analysis, a dynamically auto followed
broadcast view like what fans watch, and maybe even several
virtual close-ups zoomed in on specific areas of the field, all
generated digitally from that one source feed.
It gives incredible flexibility from minimal hardware.
That's clever, like having multiple virtual cameras.
What else is new in two point O? Next up is the Cloud Studio.
This is is a fully web-based, pretty intuitive platform.
It essentially merges the traditional roles of camera
operator, producer, director, even commentator into one
professional broadcast tool that you can access from anywhere
with an Internet connection. So you can run a whole broadcast
from a laptop. Pretty much it has this unique
slider feature. You can choose fully automatic
AI production where the system does everything, or slide it
towards AI assisted production where human operators can step
in remotely to manage specific things, maybe provide live
commentary, control replays, manually add specific graphics,
flexible. Control.
Very It also has a powerful storyboard feature.
This lets you set up dynamic overlays and sponsor graphics
that can actually react to game data in real time.
For example, you could preset it so a specific sponsors logo
automatically pops up for 10 seconds whenever a goal is
scored. Or maybe a player's real time
passing accuracy graphic automatically updates after
every completed pass triggered by the auto data feed.
Automated data-driven graphics. Nice.
And it also has two modes. Production mode, that's the
clean feed the viewers see, and press box mode.
Press Box mode let's coaches or scouts watching internally move
the virtual camera around freely, zoom in, follow specific
players without affecting the live public broadcast feed.
So internal analysis doesn't mess up the fan view.
Smart. What about replays?
Instant replay got a big upgrade.
Key game events, goals, big saves, maybe fouls get
automatically marked within studio play.
This can happen via operators in the Cloud Studio tagging moments
as they happen, or by integrating data directly from
scoreboards or the Speedo auto data feed.
So the system knows when important stuff happens.
Right. And this means those key moments
can be immediately prepared as highlight clips and replayed
often from new optimal perspective.
Using those multi angle virtual outputs you can add customizable
transitions making it look really slick and seamless within
the live feed. So producers can easily fill
pauses or recap key moments. Exactly.
It significantly enhances the live broadcast feel, adding real
production value without needing complex replay hardware or
dedicated operators. OK, Multi angle Cloud Studio
instant replay. What else?
Addressing those evolving consumption habits we talked
about, there's the Highlight Studio.
For the short form content. Precisely recognizing that huge
shift towards bite sized digestible content, the studio
is designed to automatically breakdown and package key
moments from hours of game footage with incredible speed
and precision. How does it do that?
It leverages those multiple angles and virtual panoramas to
create dynamic, engaging clips. Think a goal shown from the main
broadcast angle, then instantly replayed from behind the net.
It also presents a fantastic monetization opportunity by
making it easy to integrate sponsors seamlessly into these
shareable clips. So branded highlights ready for
social media almost instantly. That's the idea.
Reaching modern audiences where they are, how they consume
content, and creating value for sponsors at the same time.
Big sense. Any new hardware?
Yes, they introduced the new Micro X1 camera.
Thing is tiny, truly plug and play.
Measures just 8 centimeters on its longest side. 8 centimeters.
That's small. Incredibly small and its size
allows it to capture previously impossible angles.
I think placing it right inside a goal post for a unique net Cam
view or maybe discreetly on the substitute bench for close up
player reactions. Creative placements.
Totally. It integrates directly with the
multi angle production system so those unique views can be cut
into the main broadcast and it can record at up to 180 frames
per second. High frame rate.
Ultra slow motion replays revealing really intricate
details of the action, ball spin, foot placement, close
calls. It just opens up a whole new
world of creative shots and visual storytelling.
Cool tech, Anything else on the software side?
One more big one, the third generation auto follow AI.
This is their latest AI for automatically tracking the game
action. They say it sets a new standard
for accuracy in sports specific automated capture.
How is it better? It was apparently built from
scratch using vast data sets of diverse sports footage trained
with advanced machine learning. The goal is for it to understand
and follow gameplay in a much more natural, human like way.
So less robotic. That's the aim.
It means more precise tracking in complex, dynamic situations.
Think chaotic corners in football.
Now see rugby scrums, fast breaks in hockey, penalty
corners in field hockey. It doesn't just blindly track
the ball. It tries to understand player
behavior, formations, optimal framing, anticipating the flow
of the game like a good human operator would.
More intelligent tracking. Yeah, and this new generation of
auto follow AI also lays the groundwork for even more
advanced automatic event identification in the future,
like automatically detecting not just a goal, but maybe a
specific type of pass or defensive action.
Further auto automating the insights generated and refining
the live production even more. Constantly getting smarter.
Seems to be the goal. So it really isn't just one
product or even a collection of products.
It really sounds like a complete interconnected system.
An ecosystem almost. It absolutely is.
Speedio offers a complete ecosystem.
You've got seamless integration of the video, the moving images
across all of its products, streaming via play analysis via
Perform, data integration with auto, data sharing via League
Exchange, production in the Cloud Studio, all controlled via
that single cloud based interface.
Making it manageable for organizations.
Right, allowing them to manage everything remotely and
crucially, cost efficiently. And they emphasize it's not just
a typical vendor client relationship.
They talk about a partnership model.
How so? They collaborate closely with
organizations using their tech, like Alexander Groom's Red
Sports Network. They actively incorporate ideas
and feedback from these partners to continually impact the
product's development. It sounds like they feel they
share a common passion and mission for shaping the future
of sports broadcasting and analysis.
Learning from their users. Exactly.
A concrete example they give of this partnership is the
integration of that new multi angle production into the Swiss
handball leagues. It shows how cutting edge
features are being directly applied and refined in real
world scenarios, constantly pushing the boundaries of what's
possible in automated production.
That makes sense. Constant iteration based on real
world use. OK, well we've taken a really
deep dive today into how AI powered video spearheaded by
companies like Speedo is fundamentally reshaping the
world of sports, from the broadcast boost to the training
pitch and across every single level of play.
Yeah, it's far reaching. We've seen how it offers truly
unparalleled access to games that were previously invisible,
deep, and a little insights for coaches and players and entirely
new monetization opportunities for leagues and clubs, all while
empowering coaches and athletes to hopefully reach their full
potential. And if we connect this to the
bigger picture, the emergence of this auto casting powered by
sophisticated AI and integrated hardware like those smart
cameras, it really means that the traditional constraints on
sports coverage and analysis are just rapidly disappearing.
All barriers are falling. The geographical limitations,
the prohibitive costs, the reliance on massive amounts of
manual labor, all these barriers are being systematically
overcome by technology. It means every moment,
potentially every game, every player's journey can now be
captured, analyzed, and brought to life in ways that were
previously just unimaginable. It's creating this truly global
and accessible sports experience.
So thinking about that, what does this all mean for you
listening right now? If every sporting moment, truly
at every level, can now be seen and analyzed with this kind of
precision, what news stories are going to emerge from those
previously unseen corners of the sports world?
How might this change the future of talent identification or fan
engagement? Or maybe just the sheer joy of
following your local team when you suddenly have access like
never before? What possibilities does this
spark for you in the world of sports?
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