Winning the football world cup 2014 was dreams come true for Germany, a football crazy nation, particularly after 24 years of draught. There were immense expectations after 2012 European championship, where Germans were knocked out in semi finals by eventual runners up Italy. The loss was a big disappointment and that when it was termed as one the most talented team. This made DBF, the German Football association even more determined to win World Cup 2014. They were looking beyond the conventional means of training and coaching and in came SAP. we can say that there is synergistic combination of Technology and Teamwork In German Football Brilliance.
SAP, an enterprise software company founded in Weinheim, Germany and currently holds its headquarters in Walldorf, Germany. SAP is one of the largest software companies in the world and employs over 66,000 people worldwide. SAP came with a tool to help the German coaching staff make smart decisions on tactics, player fitness, scouting, preparation as well as in game management. SAP has introduced a new concept called SAP Match Insights that assists players and coaches to prepare themselves for upcoming matches by dissecting key situations that may present themselves throughout the course of the match.
“The German team uses a customized data system by SAP that identifies individual details of each player like distance covered, shots on goal, and correct passes in matches,” public relations manager for sports and entertainment at SAP, Kamila Joanna Laures, told ITWeb Africa.
“They have also taken advantage of revolutionary SAP technology that uses big data for better informed coaching decisions on tactics, player fitness, scouting, preparation and game management.
“SAP Match Insights assists players and coaches to prepare themselves for upcoming matches by dissecting key situations that may present themselves throughout the course of the match,” Laures told ITWeb Africa.
“Statistics and soccer have always belonged together. In many cases being better informed than the opposition has meant winning a match, and our software makes the analysis of big amounts of data much easier and much more reliable,” Laures said
If you have observed and followed the German games you will realize that they were more organized strategically and were always playing in a team, rather than believing in individual excellence.
To get an idea on how intricate the system is SAP Ambassador and manager of the German national football team manager Oliver Bierhoff, said, “Imagine this: In just 10 minutes, 10 players with three balls can produce over 7 million data points.” A system this detailed has never been utilized in soccer before and its debut at the World Cup has clearly been influential, seeing Germany into the Semi-Final after escaping the Group of Death along with the United States. After the completion of the World Cup in Brazil, SAP will offer the Match Insights program to other football federations as well as club teams.
Use of Technology in sport is therefore opening up unique business opportunities for technology companies. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), global sports revenues have been predicted to grow to $145.3 billion by 2015.
We never doubt on individual player contribution and excellent contributions of great German team and the entire coaching staff but to win such an event, even certain niche contributions can definitely add to the success. Hats off to Lahm, Ozil, Klose, Muller, Schweinsteiger, Khedira, Kroos, Gotze and the team for brilliant performances and a big thumbs up to Joachim Loew and his staff for carving a victorious team. The DBF for its proactive approach in supporting its team with an innovative technology.
Nobody, not even the technology can prevail over humans in a game like football but it can provide a helping hand to understand the nuances of the game.
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