Global sports technology market to reach USD 40.2 billion by 2026

The global sports technology market, valued at USD 17.9 billion in 2021, is projected to reach USD 40.2 billion by 2026. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17.5% from 2021 to 2026. Professional sports bodies, in recent years, from football to cricket to tennis and basketball, have adopted new technologies such as sports data analytics, smart stadiums, wearable devices, and digital signage to enhance team performance, engage fans, and provide smart infrastructure.

A strong emphasis on audience engagement and entertainment activities, along with the digital transformation of stadiums, is expected to drive demand for technology-driven services in the sports arena. Moreover, experts believe the industry is undergoing a paradigm shift as organizations invest more in adopting the latest technologies to monitor player performance and engage fans, among other activities.

A good example is FIFA, which approved the use of wearables during live games in 2018 to track players’ performance. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has also embraced various technologies like Spidercam, DRS, Snickometer and Hawkeye.

Sports analytics to grow significantly

Sports analytics play an important role in how sports organizations function. Previously, coaches and experts handled it during practice and training sessions, as well as live matches and tournaments. Advancements in sports technology have enabled sports organizations to make better decisions about their teams and business operations. Moreover, the growing adoption of social media platforms by fans for blogging and posting reviews is also expected to drive demand for sports analytics worldwide. Leagues are the primary users of sports analytics solutions – baseball, basketball leagues have the highest adoption rate of these solutions, particularly for selecting players. Recently, several ice hockey clubs have started investing in analytics, and American Football remains an influential market.

With the explosion of health assessment solutions, driven by fitness bands and other wearable devices, the growing volume of data to be analyzed has increased drastically. In addition, the availability of cost-effective and high-end computing solutions and the increased demand for analytics of complex data streaming are expected to drive the growth of the market.

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Advances in machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data have driven demand for sports analytics. ML algorithms can recommend players for certain positions based on their performances at home, overseas, under different game conditions, and against specific opponents. Deep neural networks and support vector machine models can help team managers formulate winning combinations and gauge their probabilities. Furthermore, big data analytics can help drive team efficiency and increase revenue through sources such as merchandise, ticket sales, media rights, and sponsorships.

Overall, data analytics has added a new dimension to the sports betting and fantasy gaming industries.