Six Nations takes next revolutionary step with Rugby's Smart Ball
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: The Smartphone changed the landscape of the world forever and it now seems the introduction of the Smart Ball could have the same effect on rugby.
The revolutionary Smart Ball will be used during the upcoming Six Nations campaign, Skysports reported.
The Smart Ball was produced by data analytics company Sportable, which was co-founded by two South Africans Pete Husemeyer and Dugald Macdonald.
According to Skysports, the artificially intelligent Smart Ball will be a gateway to more information, clear decisions, and reduced time delays in sports and officiating.
SkySports revealed that each rechargeable ball contains a micro-tracking chip which does not affect performance or flight, and communicates up to 20 times per second via radio frequency technology with 10 beacons placed around the stadium.
“We are extremely excited and proud to announce this landmark collaboration between Sportable and Six Nations,” Sportable Founder and CEO Dugald Macdonald said.
“We have been hard at work over the past few years to bring a new level of innovation and insight into elite sport, to have an opportunity to bring that to life with a forward-thinking organisation like Six Nations and their member unions is truly exciting.
“Key to our involvement is the introduction of the Smart Rugby Ball, which is now firmly entrenched at the highest level of the game and offers deep new insights and enhanced value to Six Nations Rugby, their partners, participating teams and ultimately the fans.
“We are excited to see the Smart Rugby Ball data come to life across multiple platforms over the coming months and working with Six Nations to further advance our joint offering to teams and fans over years to come.”
Commenting on the partnership, Julie Paterson, Director of Rugby at Six Nations Rugby concluded:
“As a fan-focused organisation, Six Nations Rugby is constantly exploring opportunities to give fans the best possible experience through our Championships and events. The partnership with Sportable and their smart ball technology is a testament to this ambition.
“To be able to offer fans real-time data and insight that can help bring to life the game in an innovative way is going to be incredibly exciting, and everyone involved is looking forward to seeing this translate through our extensive international broadcast coverage.
“For the teams, players and coaches, the opportunity to provide them with a new strand of information offer the potential to support training through to on-pitch decision making, which we are incredibly excited to see develop. ”
Sources: Skysports & Sportable
