English Premier League team Stoke City announced that its goalkeepers will now be trained using virtual reality. The club is partnering with Dutch company Beyond Sports and will also use the company’s VR technology to analyze match performances.
The company offers two different options for it VR training service, with a “plug and play” providing ready-made training scenarios for players, while a custom option enables clubs to tailor-made scenarios based off their own data. This training focuses on four key areas including on-field spatial awareness, decision-making, high pressure in-game scenarios and a high frequency of scenarios packed into a compressed time frame.
Meanwhile, the club will also use VR to analyze game performances, which is based off real-time tracking of match data. Beyond Sports is able to help soccer players visual specific match moments or an entire match from a variety of angles in VR when the headset is attached to a player’s head.
The company previously partnered with FA Cup winners Arsenal to offer similar services back in 2015. Other current partners include Dutch teams PSV Eindhoven and AZ Alkmaar.
Stoke, nicknamed The Potters, kick off their EPL season with an away game to high-spending Everton at Goodison Park on Aug. 12.
