Key insights of the FC Barcelona SportsTech Symposium

Where great brands and organisations meet to talk about Sports & Technology

On November 15 and 16 we had the chance to attend the 4th FC Barcelona SportsTech Symposium, taking place right next to the famous Camp Nou stadium. After being very impressed with the quality of the speakers of last year’s edition, this was a must-go event to return to. It is organised by the FC Barcelona Innovation Hub, an initiative with the “goal to create an ecosystem that bolsters knowledge and innovation, based on a model that promotes a culture of excellence and collaboration with prestige brands, universities, research centers, startups, entrepreneurs, students, athletes, investors and visionaries from all over the world”.

The two days were structured into eight different topic session and included some time for networking as well. In this article I’m sharing some key slides and insights from the sessions that I found most interesting and valuable. Happy reading!

SMART VENUES

The session was moderated by Xavier Busquets, Head Professor at Operations, Innovation and Data Sciences Department and Director of the Digital Business Master (ESADE). The participants were Benjamin Steen, Head of Customer Care and digital licensing (FC Bayern München), David Bailey, Senior Digital Research Manager (Formula 1), Jeanene Valentine, Director Ticket Operations (Minnesota United FC) and William T. Manarelli, Director of Real Estate, Espai Barca (FC Barcelona).

I was most impressed by David Baileys talk “Using F1 Circuit Wifi-tracking to drive commercial revenue”. The presentation was summarised as “F1 uses WiFi tracking at several F1 circuits per year to track footfall. Firstly, those entering the grounds of a circuit and secondly to locate the hotspots, based on footfall, at an F1 circuit. The presentation explains how WiFi tracking makes the F1 Grand Prix experience better for fans and F1 commercial partners.” Here are some of the main slides.

DATA DRIVEN DECISION MAKING

The session was moderated by Irsan Widarto, Lecturer (Johan Cruyff Institute). The participants were Finn Bradshaw, Head of Digital (Cricket Australia), João Copeto, CIO (Sport Lisboa e Benfica), Jed Ng, Head of Rakuten RapidAPI (Rakuten), Don Vu, VP Data & Analytics (Major League Baseball).

In this session I want to highlight the talks of Jed Ng and Don Vu.

Jed Ng spoke about “The API Economy for the sports industry” and the presentation showcased “how open API programs can elevate the sports industry to differentiate and delight users, and leverage their data and assets to extend their ecosystem footprint in order to create new value”. Here are the main slides.

Don Vu spoke about Wheelhouse “A New MLB Consumer Analytics Platform”. In a nutshell his presentation covered how the “MLB and the clubs sought to revolutionise the league’s data sharing infrastructure by more deeply integrating digital and in-stadium data with a new analytics platform, with a robust set of analytical and customer-centric capabilities layered on top”. Here are some more infos.

MOBILE OBSESSED

The session was moderated by Javier Zamora López, Senior Lecturer (IESE Business School). The participants were Meghan Ryan, Director Digital & Social (San Francisco 49ers), Xavier Casals, Technology & Mobile Innovation Lead (GSMA), Alejandro San Augustín, Technology Manager YouTube Sports EMEA (YouTube), Matthew Jafarian, VP Digital Strategy & Innovation (Miami Heat).

My highlights were the talks of Meghan Ryan and Metthew Jafarian.

Meghan Ryans topic was “A historic brand innovating in the heart of the Silicon Valley” and she spoke about “how the San Francisco 49ers continue to improve the fan experience in the fifth year of operation at Levi’s Stadium”. Here are the main slides.

Metthew Jafarian’s talk “85% Mobile Entry” covered “Miami HEAT’s journey towards mobile ticketing”. They “saw an opportunity to better communicate with our fans, provide more personalized service, provide fans with instant access to tickets and eliminate ticket fraud”.

SOME INSIGHTS FROM A STARTUP PERSPECTIVE

Naturally I’m always interested in cooperations between startups and big brands and sports organisations. So I was paying some extra attention throughout the talks to spot some of them. Here are some examples from Benfica Lissabon, the new Center for Technology and Innovation in Mexico and the NBA.

I’d especially recommend checking out Second Spectrum and Courtvision, a very cool glimpse into the future of sports!

I also liked to hear about the Sports Tourism Startup Competition of the United Nations World Tourism Organization that was announced by Natalia Bayona.

REVIEW

What I appreciate the most about the event is that FC Barcelona manages to bring great brands and organisations together to speak about real use cases. Those insights would otherwise be hard to get or only possible with a really good network. I also like that Barcelona looks a) outside of Europe and b) outside of the sports industry for best practices and inspirations. Definitely something that other clubs should aim for as well.

Thanks FC Barcelona for having me again!

Benjamin Penkert is the Founder of SportsTechX and Head of Consulting at leAD Sports in Berlin. You can get in touch via Linkedin, Twitter or email.

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