Revolutionizing Sports With Augmented and Virtual Reality

On September 27, 1998, the Ravens beat the Bengals in the first-ever nationally televised game at M&T Bank Stadium. Priest Holmes and Jermaine Lewis combined for 300 yards and 3 TDs.

The game itself was a fairly standard Week 4 game. However, it would also become the game that would forever change how we watch football at home.

Namely, it was the first time the world was introduced to the 1st & 10 line.

The now-ubiquitous yellow line was the culmination of the collaboration between ESPN and a true AR pioneer, a company called Sportvision (also famous for the little flags above the NASCAR cars).

If you have any doubts about it being the most successful AR feature of all time, just tell someone born after 1990 that there used to be a time when it wasn’t there.

As technology has improved, we have witnessed an increased number of virtual and augmented reality applications in sports aimed at enhancing the viewer/consumer experience as well as the athletes’ performance.

AR Advertising in Sports

It would be naive to think that the first application of augmented reality in sports was to enhance the viewing experience with a simple yellow line.

A few years before, a company called PVI broadcasted virtual advertising behind the home plate on a local broadcast of a Trenton-based MLB Draft League team. PVI later came out with their own yellow line, initially working with Sportvision, but eventually becoming competitors…it’s an interesting story, really, especially if you include a guy called David W. Crain who had patented it back in 1978[¹] and was rejected by ABC and CBS.

These kinds of virtual banners and billboards are everywhere today, but it’s important to laud the pioneers.

Of course, virtual advertising has evolved since the mid-1990s and these days, companies can choose where their advertisements will run. A great example of this can be seen in the image below:

If you look at the boarding surrounding the soccer pitch, you will see different companies advertising based on where the footage is being aired.

These banners are the most obvious ways to advertise using AR, but they are in no way the only ones. Some AR branding is more subtle.

This viral tweet from a few years ago is the perfect example:

https://x.com/OriginalYoni/status/1171217705543905280

It’s a cool use of technology, that is for sure. But in case you missed it, it’s also a branding tool.

Enhanced Fan Experience

That being said, as an AR/VR app development company, we don’t want to be too cynical, and we have to acknowledge that there are definitely applications of VR and AR in sports that are more than just marketing ploys.

Sports Fan Cam AR Filters and Overlays

Even for those who don’t live on social media or fill up device storage space with selfies, filters and overlays like those found in Snapchat can be a lot of fun. They also represent an innovative way to incorporate AR in sports.

Like Snapchat, creating themed overlays and filters for different events throughout gives users something to look forward to and try. More specifically, by offering filters and overlays for live or pre-recorded videos, fans can create unique media using these AR functions that can be shared on social media or even queued up to display on the stadium's big screen.

Spectators geo-fenced in a stadium environment can have access to unique visualizations that allow them to create memorable media to flex their fandom and share with their followers if they choose.

Though displaying live, user-recorded videos with other attendees will require content moderation, this use of augmented reality in sports gives both fans and those who simply find joy in attending sporting events with friends or family (like those with kids who don’t share the same enthusiasm for a team’s performance) something fun to do at the stadium.

Treasure Hunts for Hidden AR Experiences in Sports Venues

As we implied above, many attendees at sporting events are there for the stadium experience as much or more than the main event. Both fans and casual attendees can find fun and value when AR in sports is used to further explore the venue and find hidden experiences while taking in the scenery.

Disney has been doing this for a while now, adding virtual characters from the Star Wars franchise to their physical stores if you use their app: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZITTNO9gB8

The same principles can work to help engage fans and attendees at sporting events.

For example, pointing your camera at that little-known plaque at Gillette Stadium commemorating Tom Brady’s first Super Bowl win could deliver a VR overlay with a message from Tom, unlock his jersey for use as a filter, or even display a short clip of the Super Bowl win celebration.

Hidden AR elements at a venue can further be gamified, such as entering users who complete a treasure an opportunity to win a prize, or perhaps connecting participants with deals at participating vendors.

Other uses for this type of augmented reality in sports can include an onscreen map: users who become separated could pull up an onscreen navigation using secure location sharing to help those who become separated find each other with waypoints that take into account the unique shape and verticality of a venue.

Live Casts of Officiate Cameras and VR Replay

Virtually every sports fan will find times when they disagree with a call made by an official on the field. While slow-motion replays can help get to the bottom of tough calls, 3D recording and live casts can present a whole new way to view a game with virtual reality in sports.

Here is an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jFf7LQ2XA_A

In 2017, Fox promoted this technology for Super Bowl LI to offer fans a whole new way to rewatch plays with VR, whether to relive a fantastic play or dissect a seemingly “bad call.” Hence, with proper recording technology, replays in VR can allow users to access different angles and viewpoints, much like manipulating a camera in a video game.

Fans at home can use compatible VR headsets, while venues can offer kiosks or rooms equipped with devices for attendees to use. In time, such devices could provide recorded views from players, allowing users to enjoy an entirely new experience using virtual reality in sports, with a first-person view of a player’s game-winning catch, moments before the clock expires.

VR isn’t for everyone, but providing access to multiple camera views and additional overlays containing customizable data fields is a dream for fans who love to know the numbers and great use of augmented reality and virtual reality in sports.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1klFgc6Afv8

Similar to the solution from Telemetry in the video above for compatible devices, racers can add an overlay to the video using information collected from various motorsports data loggers.

Training Innovations

The technology has advanced well beyond the days when virtual reality sports meant playing Wii tennis. Companies such as Rezzil are revolutionizing sports training by creating immersive environments that provide professional clubs, individual athletes and amateurs with simulated real-world conditions without the associated risks.

Rezzil is focused mainly on soccer, with clubs such as Manchester City, Liverpool, and Juventus using their technology, which works. Despite their focus on soccer, some NBA teams have also started using it, as well as NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders (still feels weird that Raiders are no longer in Oakland).

Solutions such as Rezzil are usually based on triggering the same neuroplastic responses as training in real-life scenarios with a real ball. Through data analysis, the athletes and their trainers and coaches can see which areas they excel in and what they could improve.

Just as importantly, the athletes are able to practice without risking injuries, which is especially useful in high-risk sports such as football or car racing. There are also solutions such as REAKT Performance Trainer, a VR application available on Oculus Quest that is geared more towards recreational athletes and people who wish to make their physical training more interesting.

You can check that out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2PLYUESFfg&ab_channel=ReaktPerformanceTrainer

One of the major drawbacks of VR in sports training is the fact that you require a headset in order to use the various platforms and apps.

When we were approached by Mustard, the idea was to make the app usable with only your phone and the built-in camera. The movement key points and timeline would simply be overlaid over the footage, allowing for analysis and feedback.

Simply put, like every self-respecting sports app development company, we wanted to keep things simple and provide value to the users with a minimal amount of hassle.

If you have a similar idea for an augmented reality sports app, contact us today and let’s try to figure something out together.

A great example of a more robust and complex AR system is Zwift, the world-famous cycling app. A modular system that you can use with your own bicycle (or their smart bike), and the screen is used both by professional cyclists and cycling enthusiasts, giving them the opportunity to cycle world-famous tracks, compete against other users and much more.

Avoiding Injury and Improved Rehabilitation

As we mentioned earlier, one of the biggest benefits of using AR and VR training software is that athletes are much safer. This is especially pronounced in contact sports like soccer, basketball or football, where injuries suffered in training are just as common as those suffered in actual games.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), common in football players in particular, comes to mind, considering the fact that repetitive blows to the head speed up the progression of the disease.

If there is a way for football players to do the same kind of training without having their teammates running into them and knocking them on the ground every 10 seconds, is there really someone who will be against it?

Even in other sports, AR and VR solutions can reduce the chances of injury by analyzing movement data and correcting movement patterns in athletes who might be at increased risk of injury. In addition to avoiding injuries, some virtual and augmented reality solutions for athletes can help with rehabilitation and recovery from injuries.

Besides their motion tracking capabilities that make it easier to personalize rehabilitation, AR and VR recovery products also make the often very tedious and unmotivating exercises more fun, like the ones developed by ddrobotec.

You can check that out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3bne6GXFaA

Conclusion

Even if it stopped with the 1st & 10 line, it would be enough to say that AR revolutionized sports.

And we have to keep one thing in mind – these are the earliest days of virtual and augmented reality in sports. Saying that technology peaked would be like saying that cinema peaked when Abel Gance tinted some of the scenes blue in his Napoléon.

Already, VR and AR are making sports more fun for spectators, making preparation and training easier and safer for athletes. We, for one, are looking forward to what will happen in the future.

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