Man City x Playermaker Launches CITYPLAY
Next Evolution of SportsTech x Community Begins
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By: Matt Bowen
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World-renowned Manchester City recently teamed up with Playermaker, a wearable sportstech company to create the next chapter in sports and technology. Known as CITYPLAY, the app-enabled hardware connects players to proven methods the Club uses to train its own Man City Academy players.
CITYPLAY provides scores for critical football skills, allowing players to better understand their technical skills levels, such as first touch and dribbling, and their physical skills levels, such as speed and agility. CITYPLAY tracker is seamlessly mounted onto a player’s footwear with a silicon elastic strap, containing a lightweight and tiny tracking sensor that is initiated by the player’s source of motion providing a comprehensive performance analysis.
When it comes to sports business this product is so pivotal, standing out in the areas listed below:
- Sense of Community
- Superb Branding
- Hardware + Software
CITYPLAY has a physical + digital component, which may assist parents/coaches in adopting the product. The packaging is pristine, leading to a premium unboxing experience. More important that the others, CITYPLAY opens up community and expands global fan footprint. It’s easy to argue that CITYPLAY also serves as a scout.
This is why this product will set the industry’s curve. It takes sports business, sportstech, and fandom to the next level. It gamifies the game in a way that may attract players who without the digital component(data visuals) would have never played. It raises the floor on the performance of tomorrow’s elite athlete. As a whole, CITYPLAY deserves its spot in the Sportstech Hall of Fame. It's building a network of supreme footballers and loyal fans present in local communities simultaneously. A thing of beauty.
It’s critical to elaborate on community, moreso access to community. Yes, while we lauded CITYPLAY a moment ago, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the $180/yr pricetag. It’s a commitment to the game that may come easy for some, insurmountable for others. This isn’t the first “training app” for young athletes to hit the market to raise the same questoin. However, its the first to be tied to a professional club. As previously mentioned, it’s a premium product. The fact that CITYPLAY is driven by Man City lends the belief that the Club itself will fund programs to get this on the boots of kids across the planet. It’s a must for the betterment of football and society at large.
Therein lies the hope for overarching sportstech. The true reach is merely limitless. Any sport. Any child. Every opportunity to be the next superstar athlete. CITYPLAY will put its best foot forward.
