The Competitive Edge

The only thing bigger than the game itself on Super Bowl Sunday are the commercials that come with it. Shazam, the smartphone app, is rolling out an enhanced way to consume in-game content, Shazam enabled advertising and Madona’s half time show. Could Shazam be the future of god awful QR codes? 

If the subject of Shazam enabled advertising interests you then check out a previous post of mine: “Is Shazam the Future of Advertising?” http://bit.ly/xCp8Bi

As investors in Los Angeles continue to make their case for an NFL team, Farmers Insurance has gone ahead and secured the naming rights of the proposed downtown LA stadium for 30 years at a value of $600 million; the name, “Farmers Field.”

The funny thing about this deal is that the proposed 1.7 million square foot, 68,000-seat, $1 billion football stadium located in downtown as part of LA Live has no architect, no site approvals and no NFL team. Considering how tortured the attempt to return an NFL franchise to Los Angeles has been, the confidence exhibited by both parties that an NFL team will play in Farmers Field is either a remarkable display of bravado or an indication that the deal for another NFL team to move there is fait accompli. So, a leading question is whether Farmers pays the same whether or not an NFL team plays on its field.

For the LA sports fans who dreams about the NFL’s return to the City of Angels this could signify a big step in the right direction. Now all that is needed is an actual team.

Unsuspecting sports anchor practices her header during pre-game warmups

(via damnthatswhack)

Technology to Change the Way Football is Played and Watched

Research and development is a vital part to any firm’s continued success as to better serve the customer needs and wants. Here are a few football technologies being independently developed that may soon be seen on the Sunday football field.

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Laser First Down Market

A six-inch wide green laser beam is shot across the field which can be seen on both television and in the stadium while increasing first down precision. Additionally this would save approximately 90 seconds per game and with the extra time the league would be able to add about $325 million in additional advertising revenue a season. Unfortunately for traditionalist the anticipation of watching the chain gang run out on the field while the nose of the ball sneaks across the maker would all together be eliminated.

Computer Software to Call Plays

Coaches could use ZEUS, a computer modeling software to assist National Football League coaches with critical play-calling decisions. At any point in the game, by entering a set of variables, such as the score, field position, possession, down, and time remaining on the clock. Then the user enters two play-call options and the software analyzes each one separately, playing the game to its conclusion 100,000 times. During each iteration, ZEUS considers a different scenario.

Concussion Reducing Helmets

Xenith has embedded 18 shock absorbers into a flexible cap that lines the inside of a helmet. The shock absorbers are made out of a plastic that is elastic and flexible, thus it can accept a wide range of forces and return to its original shape instantaneously. The shock absorbers are hollow discs featuring a tiny hole to allow air to flow in and out. Upon impact, the walls of the discs collapse to absorb and dissipate the energy.

Gloves Fitted with Sensors

Gloves and a football equipped with remote sensing technology to measure everything from grip and trajectory to speed and position. The technology would ultimately be able to tell without doubt whether the ball was caught before it bounced off the ground. It could also show such things as who actually has the ball in a pileup, whether a runner has crossed the goal line inside a mass of humanity and whether a receiver has control of the ball before he goes out of bounds.

Goal Line TechnologyDetermines when the ball has crossed the goal-line, thus indicating whether a touchdown has been scored or not. A sensor would be placed on both noses of the football. 

Turf TV

Sportexe, the number two maker of artificial turf in the NFL, has patented the process of “tufting” fiber optics with blades of plastic grass. This will allow stadiums to change the field instantly, make it a giant jumbotron, help coaches and players run plays during practice, track footsteps…. the possibilities are endless

With all of these technologies it makes one wonder,  do we even need refs and coaches?

Sources:

CNBC- Inventor Bets His First Down Laser Will Come to Stadiums

Sports Technology Review

Carnegie Mellon- Smart Football

For those of you who can’t locate Qatar on a map… I didn’t know either. #WorldCup2022.

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FACT: Qatar has never qualified for a World Cup; 2022 will most likely be their first.

The Super Bowl is the mother of all sporting events.

Unfortunately for football and sports fans alike admission to the big game is nearly impossible as there are no public ticket sales and ticket allocations greatly favor corporate sponsors and the organization of the participating team:

74.8 percent of tickets are split among the NFL teams

• 5 percent to the host city’s team
• 17.5 percent to the AFC champion
• 17.5 percent to the NFC champion
• 34.8 percent are distributed among the remaining teams (1.2 percent per team)

25.2 percent of all Super Bowl tickets are controlled by the NFL for companies, sponsors and networks=

As someone who longs to be surrounded by the Super Bowl festivities, 30,000 camera flashes and a sky full of confetti it would probably be in my best interest to not share with you how to get tickets to the big game… but I am going to anyways.

Option 1: Send a certified letter to the NFL between Feb. 1 and June 1 of the year preceding the Super Bowl you’d like to attend.  Only one entry for a given address is accepted before a random drawing is held. This is the only means for the general public to purchase tickets at their face value.

Option 2: Be a season ticket holder. Two weeks before the game season ticket holders can enter a lottery; additionally season ticket holder of a team playing in the Super Bowl you’ll have a better chance as the ticket allotment is bigger (17.5% of total tickets)

Option 3: Buy them from a scalper or ticket brocker but be prepared to sell your first and second child, that expensive gold watch or cash in your retirement savings.

Third party ticket prices for 2010 Super Bowl

• NFL On Location — $2,399 to $6,599
• Stubhub — $2,029 to $323,528
• Razorgator — $1,846 to $315,401
• eBay — $1,350 to $343,850

Option 4: Enter a promotional drawing, lottery or sweepstakes from a sponsor such as Verizon, Visa or Southwest

When all else fails find yourself the biggest HD television and surround your self by as many friends and family as possible. Chances are you’ll have the best view of the game and save your self thousands of dollars.

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Source: How to Get Super Bowl Tickets via Guy Kawasaki