Over the past 2 years, GSIC powered by Microsoft has worked with 30 sports organizations globally to identify the most pressing challenges faced by the sports industry today.
We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of the most relevant problem statements, rooted in real-world challenges faced by the industry and curated a catalog of solutions with the best technology providers to solve them. Our partners offer innovative solutions that have the potential to transform the sports landscape.
This unique platform facilitates collaboration, accelerates innovation, and drives the growth of the sports industry.
Discover the industry’s most relevant problem statements below.
PS01 In the age of omnichannel content consumption, success is only possible if one is always able to identify, segment and fulfil the needs of an audience that is not homogenous and has a high threshold for quality. What role can data play in one or ideally all three of these activities that must be aligned?
PS02 What should our data strategy or approach be to make our app the ‘Default Digital Destination’ for fans?
PS03 How can we track utilisation of modular and/or multi-purpose real estate to play, train and compete?
PS04 In the context of Horse Racing, understand our patrons and participants better so we can create a tailored experience that meets their needs.
PS05 How may we develop a reliable and precise method for measuring the audience reach of streamed football matches on online platforms?
PS06 How can we provide tech services to our federations when the 3 different regions we need to serve (North America, Central America, and Caribbean), have a very different level of digital maturity, infrastructure, connectivity, and resources.
PS01 In the age of omnichannel content consumption, success is only possible if one is always able to identify, segment and fulfil the needs of an audience that is not homogenous and has a high threshold for quality. What role can data play in one or ideally all three of these activities that must be aligned?
PS02 What should our data strategy or approach be to make our app the ‘Default Digital Destination’ for fans?
PS03 How can we track utilisation of modular and/or multi-purpose real estate to play, train and compete?
PS04 In the context of Horse Racing, understand our patrons and participants better so we can create a tailored experience that meets their needs.
PS05 How may we develop a reliable and precise method for measuring the audience reach of streamed football matches on online platforms?
PS06 How can we provide tech services to our federations when the 3 different regions we need to serve (North America, Central America, and Caribbean), have a very different level of digital maturity, infrastructure, connectivity, and resources.
PS07 Educating the next generation of Fandom is key to ensuring a future for any sport. What are the ways in which we can raise awareness of fans who are new to a game and ideally convert occasionals into regulars?
PS08 Sportainment seeks to use the wider appeal of General Entertainment to attract more fans to a Sport. How can it be used to inform and educate institutions (sponsors, governments, investors) and individuals (parents, carers, coaches, children, athletes) for a macro benefit?
PS09 The Supermarket of Attention makes it hard to identify, engage and retain a fan. Data can solve for this to a large extent. However, it also needs to contend with privacy regulation under GDPR and the provenance of personal identifiable information (PII) that is used to segment and target fans. How can we solve for this balancing act, at a speed and scale that is demanding and growing?
PS10 Sportainment is today being recognised as an all-new genre of content that combines Sport and Entertainment. How do we decide on the optimal mix? How can we preserve the loyalty of the hard core or die-hard or traditional fan who appreciates the nuances of a sport with the pursuit of new and/or larger mid-market segment that is not as informed about the sport and sees it as an optional mode of entertainment?
PS11 How can we make our app the ‘Default Digital Destination’ for fans if their needs/expectations are not homogenous?
PS12 Many players with fitness and skill give up on sports in their early teens, at a time when they could still make a transition. For example, right before starting high school. How can we use technology to monitor this process and engage with talent before they drop out to ensure talent pathways and pipeline?
PS13 How can we extend event or season-based loyalty to a more year around perennial always one 24/7/365 habit?
PS14 Arena Sports can be defined as taking place across a large expanse of land, not all of which is visible to the fan at all times – such as Horse Racing and Motor Sports. This unique contour of the race suggests that there is potential to engage the fan by providing a PhyGital experience that combines what passes in front of them and what they can see on a smart device. How can we solve this?
PS28 Cricket is amongst the fastest-growing sports in Asia, Africa and Europe, often as a second or alternative sport adopted by new segments like females in Thailand and Japan. How can player inclusion and access to facilities be enabled using technology in a sport that needs at least 10 players to make a game of it?
PS29 How can we engage the next generation at an early age so they can practice and pursue the benefits of Sport to have a healthy lifestyle, develop good habits that last a lifetime, and reduce the burden on public health?
PS30 How can we measure the number of young kids being exposed to a sport, understand how why they did or didn’t like it, and be able to remedy adoption to ensure it becomes a habit and a way of life for them?
PS31 Water quality is a key variable for the continued well-being of those who use public pools. Whether chlorine levels or pH value, in the pump room or pool, dosage levels need monitoring since deviations that exceed legislated parameters pose public health or hygiene risks such as irritation to the eyes and burns to the skin/eyes/other sensitive areas. How can we solve this?
PS32 How can we scale the capabilities and capacities of individuals to measure the status of fitness and performance quality independently? How do we strike a balance between self-administration or aided administration such as kiosks and AI-buddies with teleconferencing coaches or booking a consultation or program?
PS33 How can we scale the training and utilisation of coaches across the value chain of talent from the grassroots to recreation, community events, amateur competition, professional performance and elite talent at international meets?
PS42 How can Sports create a portfolio of games that meets the needs of different segments of Fandom – that balances an awareness of a sport’s rule on one hand with time and money available on the other – from casual games using HTML5 to Web3 for the discerning fan?
PS43 How can we use new technologies such as Computer Vision and applications such as motion capture, player tracking and mixed reality to gamify the live broadcasting of a competition and merge it with fantasy and betting where individual fans have skin in the game?
PS44 The easy access discovery and consumption of content has raised the bar on the depth and speed of engagement. Fans wish to be constantly connected with their event, team and player brands. How can we design and create PhyGital experiences that are relevant regardless of location, time zones and language?
PS45 What alternative or additional means or mediums can we use to engage the next generation from a young age so they are exposed to a wide(r) variety of sport, gain an understanding of the game without being intimidated and appreciate its benefits such as the sense of community it can provide?
PS46 Storytelling is a proven way to gain attention in the digital age. However, creating stories is no longer the preserve of institutions such as media publishers and federations, leagues or clubs as individuals – be they fans or creators – also express themselves, share their stories and/or amplify a story. What are the smart ways to surface a story so it meets the desired audience segment?
PS47 Sportainment is the New Black as a content genre though it needs shades of grey since Fandom is neither homogenous nor a singular whole. How do we decide the media, messaging and medium to address multiple segments?
PS48 What are the creative, content and commercial variables to make our app the ‘Default Digital Destination’ for fans?
PS53 Cycling is a growing sport, especially on tarmac and thin tyres but is constrained by city design, road safety measures due to peripheral vision, and a critical mass of accessible routes. How can this fast-growing segment be served and serviced?
PS54 What solutions are available to have modular and multi-purpose real estate at a local postcode or community level (rather than large stadiums for marquee/major events) so talent can play, train and compete?
PS55 How can location sensors help in the deployment of staff and contractors during an event and best modulate during peak points such as half time and end of play when crowds behave en masse? Further, how can this system also be used during emergency situations?
PS56 How can we improve stadium operations and enhance the fan experience before, during, and after events with a solution that is precise (less than 1 meter) and fast (less than 2-second latency) whilst adhering to privacy laws?
PS57 The atmosphere in the venue is a key part of the media product but is also highly dependent on spectators attending each event. What technologies can be used to enhance the sound and senses of existing attendees regardless of crowd size – as much for the fans in stands, as for those watching individually on a smart device and those watching in groups in homes, public spaces and bars?
PS58 What commercial opportunities can be had when we bridge the gap between those watching on-air or online with those interacting socially – and those in the Web3 environment?
PS62 How can we track and tie sustainability metrics into sponsorship so brand partners can publicise their commitment and practice of being eco-friendly and environmentally conscious or responsible?
PS63 How can we make content, billboards and data shoppable so that brand sponsors can leverage the emotion of a live sports environment and their association with that event as a partner – to shorten/flatten the demand funnel from awareness to purchase and make money?
PS64 How do football clubs generate demand and provide commercial strategy for brands that could be measured for return on marketing investment that show sponsorship as one of the vehicles suitable for brands?
PS65 How can a football club develop its digital subscription and membership strategy and offering suitable to its core target audience and convince them to pay for the services?
PS66 Cricket is amongst the fastest-growing sports in Asia, Africa and Europe, often as a second or alternative sport adopted by new segments like females in Thailand and Japan. How can technology solve for access, inclusion and performance in a sustainable manner that avoids the use of paper?
PS67 How can we sustainably solve for optimal real estate (mid-size stadiums or neighbourhood playing enclosures) that is sufficiently equipped (and well located) to host competitions that are key to surfacing talent for identification?
PS68 Mass Participation Sports such as marathons, park runs and bike rides accrue large and lasting benefits to tourism, public health and community engagement. But they also create a lot of waste – from runner bibs and number tags for the participants, to posters and signage for directional or aesthetic reasons, and, packaging from food & drinks consumed by spectators, participants and contractors. How can technology solve for a reduced carbon footprint and more sustainable delivery of such events?
PS69 The sourcing, cleaning and redistribution of water in public and private pools can gain from being eco-friendly whilst conforming to legislation and managing external contaminates from the environment such as load, rainfall, and exposure to ultraviolet deterioration. How can we cost-effectively, accurately, and digitally capture readings and administer dosage? Can they be combined with an early warning system and/or a fail-safe trigger mechanism if sensors and instruments are off-calibration?
PS70 How can we gamify learning about recycling and eco-friendly tips & tricks to raise awareness of its importance, especially amongst young fans? Can this be linked to their daily activities? Should it be focused on match-day experiences when there is deeper attention and higher emotional investment? Can this be converted into a PhyGital experience with a Web3 dimension that goes back & forth in time to show the impact of habits harming the environment?
PS71 How can we enable those already in urgent need of sustainability and who are willing/committed to make a difference through steps such as the measurement of carbon footprint and emissions? Are there industry best practices for the implementation of sustainability measures?
PS75 How can we use sensors and lasers to ring-fence competition areas such as for combat sports since not all gyms have the physical space for a ring or the investment needed to build and maintain a cage?
PS76 How can we use new technologies such as Computer Vision and applications such as motion capture, player tracking and mixed reality to democratise learning, and accelerate talent development?
PS77 Cricket is amongst the fastest-growing sports in Asia, Africa and Europe, often as a second or alternative sport adopted by new segments like females in Thailand and Japan. How can player performance be tracked to identify talent and enable pathways journeys from recreation to competitive?
PS78 Can we have non-invasive ways to capture additional vital signs of a player to build a more complete profile for analysis of performance (during training and competition), anticipate injury and expedite recovery?
PS79 How can we make players accountable for following regimens and meeting their obligations to those who have invested their ‘currency’ – whether that is time, money, reputation, brand equity or other assets?
PS80 Hydration is a key performance and recovery strategy at any level in sports. Once the training session or match starts, there is no specific control over the specific amount of water, hydration from energy drinks, etc., that they get. How can technology help monitor this hydration status from an individual perspective?
COMING SOON!
GSIC powered by Microsoft has developed a curated catalog of top-tier solutions, for sports entities providing essential information on leading solution providers for a wide range of problem statements. Our catalog features cutting-edge solutions designed to address the unique challenges facing the sports industry today including:
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