When it comes to measuring the value of sports, it’s clear that it is not only the most valuable form of entertainment but one of the most valuable industries, period.
According to Global Newswire, the global sports industry is already worth a staggering $350 bn a year, employing countless millions of people and bringing us some of the most well-known sporting figures on the planet. As with any big-money industry, the emerging technologies that are driving change in other sectors are also making their impact felt here.
While plenty of coverage has been devoted to how technology is changing sports for the athletes and the elite clubs, little has been devoted to the myriad ways that the same tech is changing the experience for us, the consumer. Let’s dive in and take a closer look.
Safer Ticketing
One of the major longstanding challenges in the professional sports industry has been the twin scourges of ticket fraud and scalping. These practices have made it harder for real fans to see the teams that they love, which is why tech has stepped in to make these practices much more difficult.
The introduction of electronic ticketing, with third-party sites such as Ticketmaster now serving as both vendor and ticket scanner, has been shown to have resulted in a near-collapse in scalping across some sports, such as football.
It has also made it much more difficult to successfully forge tickets. To take this even further, some major vendors are looking into NFT-based ticketing systems, where the blockchain can assign tickets to individuals in a way that can be easily tracked and traced.
Wall-to-wall Coverage
Granted, the likes of ESPN and BBC Sports have been trying their best to provide round-the-clock coverage for years now. However, the internet has managed to outdo them in this regard with ease. Only in recent years has it become possible to receive 24/7, instant coverage on your sport of choice, without a moment’s pause.
Major broadcasters and sports media companies will run constant live blogs, Twitter feeds, YouTube channels, and IG live content that ensures the biggest NFL or NBA fans literally do not miss a single thing if they don’t want to.
Real-time Sports Wagering
Wagering has always been an integral part of the professional sports market. That’s why most of the largest stadia in the world tend to have physical bookmakers attached to them, or at least near the premises.
However, with the influence of online options, one major tech trend in the sports betting area has been the recent advent of live, real-time sports wagering. With digital betting applications such as Betway satta, fans can place a real-time wager on, say, the Qatar World Cup, while the game is in-play.
Not only that, but players can also cash out during the game if their outcome has been realized, allowing them to instantly withdraw winnings before the fixture has even concluded. This tech innovation is another indication that the future of sports is all about instant gratification.
Bite-sized Consumption
Taking it back to social media, it’s also worth noting how, for most of us, consumption of sports has mostly become a more bite-sized affair. As live ratings have consistently declined throughout the decade, sports broadcasters have had to contend with the smaller attention spans of those born in the information age.
That’s why so much of sport today is broadcast in small chunks, with highlights reels often forming the cornerstone of content for most of the largest broadcasters.
Meanwhile, leagues and broadcasters have gone all-in on their social media strategy, racking up ad revenue through Tik Tok videos and YouTube roundups that showcase recent fixtures in a format that is more digestible for today’s easily-distracted audiences.
VR/AR Broadcasting
This is a niche, emerging phenomenon, but an important one nonetheless. The use of virtual and augmented reality to create a truly immersive sports viewing experience for fans at home is slowly gaining traction across the industry.
We’ve seen how ESPN and Fox Sports have begun offering AR NFL broadcasts for at-home viewers. We’ve also seen how the AT&T Arena in Dallas has transformed its football half-time show into an AR extravaganza for on-site audiences. The list of examples is sure to grow significantly in the coming years.
Sport is a centuries-old pastime, one that has always been subject to the prevailing technological trends of the day. These examples show how our collective sport-viewing experience is being transformed in the digital age.