Nearly 8 in 10 kids want new technologies in sports coverage, recent survey finds

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23rd February 2024 11:28 - Sport, Leisure and Tourism

Nearly 8 in 10 kids want new technologies in sports coverage: According to a recent survey, nearly 8 in 10 (79%) kids want new technologies to be introduced in coverage of sports that they watch. The most popular technological development children want to see are smart balls with built-in sensors and cameras in footballs (both 31%).

The survey was conducted by Virgin Media O2, to try and understand what new developments future sports fans may want to see when watching their favourite sports. The research comes as Virgin Media O2 partnered with Ericsson to provide 5G connectivity for an augmented reality e-sports tour in 2023.

The research also found that 27% of children would like to see virtual reality headsets for fans to see the sport played through the eyes of their favourite players. Additionally, a quarter (25%) of the respondents said they would watch more sports if new technology was introduced and 24% said they’d be more likely to play.

In terms of viewing figures, football (37%), athletics (15%) and basketball (13%) would gain more spectators if new technologies were added. On the other side of things, football (33%), swimming (15%) and tennis (13%) would gain the most new players.

The top 5 most wanted tech developments in sports, as voted by the respondents (children):

·       Smart balls with built in sensors

·       Cameras in football

·       VR headsets for fans so they can see player’s POVs

·       Eco-friendly sport stadiums

·       Injury prevention technology so players don’t get injured.

Another popular choice was having robot referees introduced to football but with the on-going controversy of VAR in the game, this idea is unlikely to happen anytime soon. Twenty-three per cent of the respondents called for this.

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