January 4 – Premier League Southampton have entered the sports tech development scene with a challenge to developers and companies to come up with the next big idea in either the football development or fan engagement space.
Supported by club owners Sport Republic and Yolo Group, ‘The Future of Football’ challenge has been to find and support the next sports tech startup.
The challenge is targeted at Web3 and sports tech startups with solutions to:
- Football development (scouting, training, recovery, game analytics etc.)
- Fan engagement (gamification, loyalty programmes, matchday experiences, global fan engagement etc.)
Those getting through the first stage will have the opportunity to test and pilot their solutions, participate in tailored workshops, and have direct access to Southampton FC, Sport Republic and Yolo Group decision-makers. Teams will pitch for a commercial relationship with the club and a £100k discretionary prize pool to develop their ideas.
“Southampton FC’s commitment to innovating and creating a positive impact is central to the way we operate and make decisions. We’re excited to see programme participants create the future of football,” said Sarah Batters, director of marketing and partnerships at the club.
Yolo Group is the managing partner for the Future of Football challenge. Yolo Group works across gaming, fintech, and blockchain, and operates the Sportsbet.io brand, Southampton’s main sponsor.
“This programme is designed to push boundaries, to bring together a spectrum of solutions from startups around the globe. It’s a chance to create truly unique approaches — and test them. We’re driven by innovation; so, we’re looking forward to seeing the results,” said Tim Heath, GP at Yolo Investments and founder of Yolo Group.
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