IBM’s Coach Advisor is being used to track player performance at the U.S. Open. (Courtesy of IBM)
Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2019 – A roundup of some of the key sports technology stories you need to know, including SportTechie’s own content and stories from around the web.
- IBM has launched a platform called Coach Advisor to help track player performance at this year’s U.S. Open. Coach Advisor analyzes video from live matches to measure a player’s physiological load and mechanical intensity during a match. “We are excited to continue our work with IBM to pair analytics with our coaching expertise, and believe IBM Coach Advisor will give us a competitive advantage to help change the paradigm of tennis coaching and development in the U.S,” said Martin Blackman, GM of player development at the USTA, in a statement.
- The United Soccer League announced a new three-year rights agreement with ESPN that covers USL Championship and League One matches through the 2022 season. The deal will see more games streamed on ESPN+ and triple the amount of total matches televised per year across ESPN networks. Games will also be broadcast in Spanish on ESPN Deportes for the first time. The USL Championship is in the second division of American soccer while League One is part of the third division.
COURTSIDE VIEW: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at ESPN’s High-Tech U.S. Open Operations
- The National Independent Soccer Association has signed a live streaming partnership with soccer-focused streaming platform MyCujoo. NISA’s inaugural season will kick off on Aug. 31. The league is sanctioned by the U.S. Soccer Federation as the third division of American soccer. All games from the season will live stream on MyCujoo. The company’s portfolio also includes the rights to stream Brazilian National Federation soccer, the Malaysia Soccer League and Japan Women’s Soccer League.
- Amazon Alexa’s knowledge base will encompass more NFL stats, players, and teams this upcoming season. Users can now ask Alexa more advanced questions such as how many penalty yards a team might have or even how many fantasy points a player has picked up in a game. In addition to the expanded NFL knowledge, Alexa is also able to answer more detailed questions about college football and even local high school teams.
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