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SportsTech

Sports analytics, fan engagement tech, and the digital transformation of athletics.

16 articles in this category.

Wide photo of a packed baseball stadium at dusk under stormy purple clouds, with stadium lights over the green field
SportsTech10 min

MLB ABS Year One: 9,485 Challenges and a Postseason Test

Catchers win 58.6% of ABS challenges, pitchers 40.4%. A data review of MLB's first ABS season, and why October's leverage will test every team's strategy.

A hand pointing a remote at a TV showing a live soccer match, in a dimly lit living room
SportsTech10 min

World Cup Streaming Record: What It Means for NFL Streaming

The 2026 World Cup final drew 62.8M to 66.4M US viewers, and streaming's share of Telemundo's audience surged. What that means for fragmented NFL streaming.

Close-up of a tennis net stretched across a blue hard court with crisp white lines in bright sunlight
SportsTech11 min

US Open Line-Call Error: Who Answers When the Machine Is Wrong?

A line-calling malfunction cost Anna Kalinskaya a point at the 2026 US Open. The USTA blamed the machine and its officials. The fallback is the real story.

Black-and-white shot of a golfer following through on a tee shot on a tree-lined course
SportsTech9 min

Golf Tech 2026: TrackMan vs Toptracer AI Swing Analysis

TrackMan's Tracy AI and 40+ data points serve coaches. Toptracer IQ's new AI serves public ranges. Here's how the two golf-tech leaders actually split.

Black-and-white photo of a basketball player leaping for a layup over defenders in an indoor gym
SportsTech9 min

AI Basketball Analytics 2026: Second Spectrum, NBA2Vec

Second Spectrum tracks every NBA player at 25fps. NBA2Vec borrows AI language-model techniques to find hidden player-role similarities. Here's how it works.

Close-up of a tablet screen filled with colourful sports icons such as balls, rackets and a trophy
SportsTech9 min

Sports Betting Data Infrastructure: Genius Sports 2026

Genius Sports bought Legend for $1.2B and won FIFA 2026 World Cup rights. Here's how the Genius Sports vs Sportradar data-rights oligopoly actually works.

Hazy crowd of sports fans raising phones and scarves in a stadium stand
SportsTech9 min

Fan Engagement Apps 2026: Second-Screen and AR Stadiums

80% of fans use a second screen during games. AR stat overlays are now standard. Here's how NBA, NFL, MLB apps and stadium AR actually work in 2026.

A football helmet resting on the turf of a dark field at night, with players blurred in the distance
SportsTech10 min

Concussion Tech 2026: Helmets, Q-Collar, ImPACT Compared

Three concussion-prevention layers — Riddell AXIOM helmets, the FDA-cleared Q-Collar, and ImPACT cognitive testing — compared head-to-head for 2026.

Referee in a green shirt raising his arm between players in blue and white kits on a grass field, ball at his feet
SportsTech9 min

Semi-Automated Offside 2026: FIFA's World Cup Tech Stack

FIFA scanned 1,248 players, runs 12 cameras per stadium, and uses a smart ball with a 500Hz IMU. The 2026 World Cup is football officiating's pivot.

Football dressing room with numbered blue jerseys over lockers and floor text reading "This Is Our Home, Pride of London"
SportsTech10 min

Athlete Biometric Data Ownership: NFL, NBA, MLB Showdown

NFL players own their WHOOP data. NBA bans broadcast biometrics outright. MLB's CBA is silent. The 2026 negotiations rewrite the data-licensing market.

Night view of a packed stadium under a curved, lit roof, overlooking a floodlit soccer pitch and running track
SportsTech9 min

Stadium 5G 2026: SoFi, Allegiant, Intuit Dome Connectivity

SoFi, Allegiant, and Intuit Dome rebuilt the stadium-tech baseline: private 5G, Wi-Fi 6+, and IoT mesh per venue. T-Mobile now runs all 29 MLB parks.

Esports arena stage lit in blue with Intel Extreme Masters ESL Katowice 2022 screens and lighting rigs
SportsTech9 min

Esports Infrastructure 2026: Riot, ESL FACEIT, BLAST

The three companies behind global esports rebuilt anti-cheat, cloud production, and data licensing in 18 months. Here's how the stack now works.

Cheering college sports fans in purple and gold waving yellow towels, one in a purple jester hat and foam finger
SportsTech9 min

NIL Marketplaces 2026: Opendorse, INFLCR, MOGL, Athliance

The four NIL marketplaces that matter, the House settlement reshaping them, and how Opendorse, INFLCR, MOGL, Athliance now compare for 2026.

A soccer player in a black training vest dribbling a ball on a sunlit pitch while a teammate warms up behind
SportsTech8 min

Catapult vs STATSports vs WIMU: GPS Load Monitoring

The three elite GPS load-monitoring systems compared head-to-head: sample rate, indoor capability, analytics depth, and which clubs use each.

Dozens of tennis balls suspended in the air above a dim clay court lit by a slanting beam of light
SportsTech8 min

Ball-Tracking Wars: Hawk-Eye, TrackMan, Sportvision

Sportvision pioneered it. TrackMan radar replaced it. Hawk-Eye cameras now own every MLB and NFL stadium. The 20-year arms race is essentially over.

A baseball runner sliding into home plate in a cloud of dust as the umpire signals safe and the catcher holds the ball
SportsTech8 min

MLB ABS Challenge System: 1,000 Calls, 55% Overturned

MLB's ABS Challenge System launched April 2026. After ~1,000 calls with 55% overturned, the catcher's seat is suddenly baseball's most powerful.

Frequently asked about SportsTech

What is sportstech?
Sportstech is the technology layer of sport — athlete tracking and analytics (Catapult, Hudl, Stats Perform), fan-engagement platforms, league broadcast tech, sports-betting infrastructure, stadium IoT, and the AI tools coaches and front offices now ship with. We cover both professional leagues and the consumer tech that trickles down to amateurs.
How do leagues use AI in 2026?
Major leagues use AI for video analysis (auto-tagging plays, generating scouting reports), injury prediction (workload + biomechanics models), officiating assistance (replay review, line-call automation), and fan personalization (broadcasts, in-app experiences). Adoption is uneven — NFL and English Premier League lead, smaller leagues lag.
Do you cover sports betting tech?
We cover the technology layer — odds-modeling, sportsbook infrastructure, live-data licensing — without promoting gambling. We will not run "best parlay this week" content. The editorial line is the same as fintech coverage: tech, not picks.

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