Catapult has built a new football with an embedded chip for wireless charging and collecting ball and player-tracking data. The football was created in partnership with radio frequency-based wireless charger provider Energous Corporation and is being showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Catapult, which is known for its wearable GPS devices and video analysis software, has partnerships with all 32 NFL teams and 95% of Power 5 college football programs in the NCAA. Catapult’s new football is manufactured with a lightweight chip for tracking real-time movement of the ball and players touching the ball. Coaches can use Catapult’s cloud software to view the metrics during or after practices. More than 3,000 elite teams partner with Catapult across all sports.
Energous’s WattUp wireless charger built into the football eliminates the need for teams to host ball charging stations on sidelines, which were needed during the recent FIFA World Cup in Qatar that was the first to be played with a sensor-embedded soccer ball from Adidas and Kinexon to assist Hawk-Eye's semi-automated offsides VAR officiating system. Wilson Sporting Goods also began selling its sensor-embedded Omega Football last month.
