There is an increasing popularity of sport and the acknowledgment of its perks is being capitalized on by many different sports ecosystems all over the world. The ambition is clear: to expand sporting tech and innovation to make the sports ecosystem strong. Technology has been quietly transforming the world of sports for years, with investment in areas like esports continuing to rise. Sports Tech is one of the most active sectors for investors, with an overall funding of USD 17B in 2.18K+ companies. It is also interesting to note that more than one fourth of the funding has been raised in the last 3 years. According to Techcrunch, from an investment perspective, media and content-related platforms, esports and measurement platforms for data, analytics and biometrics were among the top three areas of interest. Other notable areas include athlete tech and performance optimization, in-venue technology, gambling and gaming and recovery health and home fitness.
Let’s see some of the most booming startups in the SportsTech ecosystem.
SportsTech Startups
1. ReSpo
Vision is a Polish startup that offers AI-based video analytics. The startup’s solution uses computer vision and machine learning algorithms to analyze football games in real-time, directly from any broadcast TV feed. It extracts 3D tracking data of all players and the ball in real-time to detect events, assess performance, and provides insights and recommendations. ReSpo leverages the latest, cutting-edge AI research and uses it to watch & analyze football games providing clubs, federations, bookmakers, and media with an unmatched depth of knowledge.
2. Zwift
The app makes indoor cycling fun. You can explore, train and compete with a global community behind you for $14.99/month. Zwift blends the fun of video games with the intensity of serious training, helping you get faster. You can also level up in the virtual worlds of Zwift with a community that motivates you every minute. Choose from training plans, group rides, races, and more.
3. Scout
With Scout you can put your football passion to the test. Connect and trade with other fans in their open marketplace. It is about building strategies, creating lineups and earning points based on your players’ real-life performances.
4. HomeCourt
It is an interactive basketball app that takes your skills to the next level. It’s the personal skills trainer that’s always with you, capturing your performance, and providing you with guided feedback. HomeCourt is an official partner of the NBA and has been built to harness all the knowledge and expertise of the most elite players in the game today. Train with the pros, learn their moves, and even compete against them in interactive challenges. Improve your skills anytime, anyplace. Train smarter with instant feedback, engage in fun and immersive drills, and compete virtually with players around the world. HomeCourt is completely free to use and requires no sensors, special cameras. All you need is a basketball and an iPhone or iPad.
5. Veo
It is the ultimate camera for team sports. Record and live-stream your matches automatically and take your game a level up. Trusted by teams from Sunday League to Champions League. 500.000+ Matches recorded, 80+ Countries worldwide.
6. ShotTracker
It is a revolutionary sensor-based system that delivers statistics and analytics to teams, fans and broadcast networks instantly, enhancing the experience of the game both on and off the court. At ShotTracker, they aim to improve the performance of competitive athletes who participate in team sports at all levels by bringing elite-level analytics to the masses.
7. Buzzer
With Buzzer you can watch the best moments in sports, live. Buzzer curates the best live moments in sports to each fan’s preferences. Use micropayments or subscription authentication to never miss a moment. Buzzer simplifies the discovery and viewing experience of live sports on mobile in a short-form live format. Current league partners include NBA League Pass, WNBA League Pass, PGA TOUR and NHL and others. As a company committed to building community and with a strong culture top of mind, they will continue to invest in its strive initiative, which creates access for talent in underrepresented communities through a three-pronged strategy to prioritize growth and reinvestment in underserved communities.
8. Loupe
It is a FREE app built for the modern sports card collector. No shady deals. No missing out. All the best parts of the hobby with none of the hassle. Connect with a community of fellow collectors and get access to new products as soon as they hit the market. Join LIVE sales every day and pull huge hits with everyone cheering you on. You can also become a Loupe partner and sell cards on your own live streams!
9. Playtomic
You can book your padel or tennis court instantly. 2900 + clubs worlwide, 1M+ users, 1500+ cities. You can choose your favourite sports club or let Playtomic suggest you the one nearby. You can filter the results by date, time, type of court.
10. Opendorse
Opendorse gets athletes opportunities. 50,000+ athletes use Opendorse to understand, build, protect, and monetize their brand.Opendorse provides technology to the athlete endorsement industry. They serve the full lifecycle of supporting athletes: educating, assessing, planning, sharing, creating, measuring, tracking, disclosing, regulating, listing, browsing, booking, and more.
11. Oliver
Oliver is revolutionizing football training through their platform developed to improve performance, evolve talent, and prevent injuries. The 3 elements to their advanced tech platform are; the Bluetooth component “Oli”, which is a small device to put in your sock to track distance covered, shot speed, etc; the mobile app, to synch and visualize data; and finally, the web portal, allowing you to have an in-depth analysis of club, team and players performance.
12. Wefitter
Technology is always changing, and Wefitter is changing with it, with their adoptable sports-orientated API. Wefitter has developed an API platform that is able to connect users to promote a healthier world. It gives your platform easy access to today’s most used fitness apps and wearable connections, including Apple Health, Fitbit, and Garmin, and also have leaderboards, badges, and rewards from their gamification API..
13. Suiff
Whilst many sportstech devices are more based on cardio-based training, Suiff provides an option for building muscle to help you achieve your goals. It proudly owns the only patented sensor that records data on your strength to personalize a training program that’s right for you. So, whether you are just starting out on your fitness journey, or if you consider yourself the Hulk’s understudy, Suiff can definitely expand your capabilities in the gym to ensure you stay motivated and reach your goals.
14. Racetick
Racetick is the global platform for sports events of mass participation. The goal is to make the connection to sports events for athletes much easier through its new model of registration. Their main sports offered are swimming, running, cycling and triathlon, and their option of search by location brings a whole host of options if you’re an eager athlete. This platform brings together participants and event organizations to meet the demands of both in a seamless manner.
15. Skitude
Skitude allows you to book ski resort holidays, check real-time information on restaurant hours and weather updates, track your activity on the slopes, and even compete with the community, The platform has experienced continuous growth since it was founded. So, if you consider yourself a skiing enthusiast, Skitude is the app for you!
16. Ballogy
With Ballogy get the attention of coaches, schools, and other athletes around the world as you build your athletic profile and share your success. Ballogy measures, tracks, and evaluates the growth and progress of your development over time with objective assessments of general athletic skills, sport-specific skills, and body measurements. Challenge yourself and others as you move up the ranks of leaderboards with every Ballogy test you take. You have the option to compete against a friend, your teammates, or the entire basketball community. Certify your shooting scores, performance, and body measurements for ultimate credibility with coaches and schools. You can have Player Profile Showcase your basketball highlights, videos, photos and other athletic achievements in your personal Ballogy account. For camp director, coach or trainer they offer an opportunity to connect with players remotely – all from one centralized location. And there is a Home Feed feature to constantly update feed of activity from the people and groups you follow on Ballogy.
I hope you found this article useful. If you believe that we are missing other SportsTech startups that deserve to be mentioned here, let us know in the comments section below!
And if you need help with your SportTech project, let us know, we are experts in developing software platforms applying data science!
