FIFA World Cup 2018: How Germany are using technology to stay ahead in Russia

[∆VERON∆™]

Germany lifted the World Cup title in 2014 in Brazil with a stunning volley from Mario Goetze, defeating Lionel Messi’s Argentina by 1-0. Four years on, the side led by coach Joachim Loew is eager to become only the second nation after Brazil to lift two back-to-back World Cup trophies. The South American nation achieved the record over fifty years ago when they won the titles back in 1958 and 1962. Now, with the tournament moving to Russia, Germany are using technology to give themselves to conduct player analysis, in order to push themselves as the favourites to defend the title.

According to a report by Forbes, the Die Mannschaft have partnered with software giant SAP and have created applications for analyzing match data. The applications have also been used to store and record personalized feedback on players

“We have an incredible amount of data at the German national team that we need to process and share in real time with the trainer, the players and the analysts,” Germany national team manager Oliver Bierhoff was quoted as saying by the Forbes.  “Artificial Intelligence and machine learning play a significant role in football and are an essential part of (Germany’s) data analytics,” he further added.

Here are some insights regarding Germany’s tryst with technology:

* Player performance is analysed by using the multiple cameras that surround playing field.

‘* This data is used to measure number of touches, possession time, distance travelled, movement speeds and directional changes.

* The first application, SAP Challenger Insights, provides information on the opposition’s characteristics, their offensive and defensive tendencies and their formations.

* The second, called Penalty Insights Function, is meant to help goalkeepers and coaches spot patterns around how their opponents take penalty kicks.

According to the report, Germany, back in 2014, improved their passing speed, reducing average possession time from 3.4 seconds in 2010, to 1.1 seconds. They have also used technology to build a younger squad. The average age of players in the squad is 25.7, making them the second youngest squad in this World Cup, only after Nigeria.