KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sporting Kansas City broadcasts on 38 The Spot will feature advanced real-time analytics integrated into the game-day experience after the club announced a three-year deal Wednesday with TRACAB.
The technology will provide statistical and positional tracking data along with tactical video feeds, which will allow for detailed match insights and also help Sporting KC’s technical staff optimize team and player performance.
"Our partnership with Sporting Kansas City will provide the club with the very latest real-time tracking technology that will fuel insight for the analysis teams, but also enhance outputs across live broadcasts and digital channels for fans," TRACAB Director of Tracking Operations and Services Diego Martinez Del Campo said in a statement from the club. "It's great to be working with such a like-minded organization with analysis and fan engagement at the heart of what we both do."
TRACAB has installed an array of Gen-5 cameras, which captures the action on the field at a frame rate of 25 times per second. The technology already is in use at more than 300 stadiums worldwide, including Germany’s Bundesliga and Spain’s La Liga.
"Sporting Kansas City is the first Major League Soccer club to take advantage of TRACAB's cutting-edge approach to match analysis," Sporting KC assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin said. "These tools give us a winning edge both on and off the field by providing our staff with real-time tactical video and positional tracking data while also showcasing the sport in a new and exciting way that will even further engage our fans."
The system tracks more than 3.5 million data points per match.
Sporting KC opens the 2022 season on Feb. 27 at Atlanta, a game that will be televised on FS1, while the home opener — and first game on 38 The Spot (KMCI-TV) — will be March 5 against Houston, which is now coached by former SKC midfielder and coach Paulo Nagamura.