SAP and Germany Make a Big Data Team at the World Cup
The expectations of the German national team this World Cup has been immense. And it has been building ever since their great run in the European Championship in 2012, where the DFB (German Football Association) was knocked out in the semifinal by the eventual Italian runners up. The entire, soccer crazed, nation of Germany was heartbroken. The German side was chalked full of talent and their people had high hopes of winning a European Championship, but they were denied. This loss hurt, but it also started a fire in the DFB, a fire that has been ever-present in the approach to and during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
The DFB wants to win this World Cup; and to ensure that the German players have every possible advantage in Brazil so what did they do? They built their own base camp. Campo Bahia is the name and it has everything that the Germans could need to fuel them to a priceless World Cup victory. The camp is state of the art with housing units for the players and staff, training pitch, fitness center and places where the players can get much needed relaxation after the rigors of World Cup play. The camp is also at an optimal location to reduce the strain of long distance travel across the great country of Brazil.
Campo Bahia is not the only innovative move the DFB has taken to try and be successful in Brazil. The German team is also taking advantage of revolutionary technological leaps of SAP, an enterprise software company founded in Weinheim, Germany and currently holds its headquarters in Walldorf, Germany. SAP is one of the largest software companies in the world and employs over 66,000 people worldwide. SAP is proudly partnering with the German national team to collaborate their technological advances to enhance player performance and boost the chances of Germany winning its 4th World Cup.
SAP is using Big Data to help the German coaching staff make smart decisions on tactics, player fitness, scouting, preparation as well as in game management. SAP has introduced a new concept called SAP Match Insights that assists players and coaches to prepare themselves for upcoming matches by dissecting key situations that may present themselves throughout the course of the match.
To get an idea on how intricate the system is SAP Ambassador and manager of the German national football team manager Oliver Bierhoff, said, “Imagine this: In just 10 minutes, 10 players with three balls can produce over 7 million data points.” A system this detailed has never been utilized in soccer before and its debut at the World Cup has clearly been influential, seeing Germany into the Semi-Final after escaping the Group of Death along with the United States. After the completion of the World Cup in Brazil, SAP will offer the Match Insights program to other football federations as well as club teams.
Not only is the information gathered by SAP vital for the players and coaching staff of the German national team, but it is also useful for members of the media. We have seen the advancement of handheld media’s ability to give up to the minute stats from Brazil with ESPN FC Essentials and SAP wants to further that capability and help the media deliver even more informed information for their public audiences.
The German national team is ahead of the curve in world football and SAP has been able to help them on their way to the top (and into the Semi-Finals of the World Cup). Stefan Wagner, managing director of SAP Labs in Brazil explained, “The DFB is keen to spearhead this industry transformation. With solutions provided by SAP, together we are perfectly poised for this transformation and a successful World Cup.”
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Original article:
SAP and Germany Make a Big Data Team at the World Cup
