Virtual Reality technologies have gained traction the last few years, even big mainstream brands are applying it’s use to various purposes such as Sony with their VR-headset for Playstation. Other practical uses are for real estate agents showing around their houses, and TU Delft begun tests with the use of VR to combat social anxieties. Dutch footballclubs, Ajax, AZ and PSV, as well as the national squad, are now also using VR for a very special purpose; teaching the game of football!
VR allows football players to re-watch their own or other matches as real as possible, and can make them think about what they could have done better when re-evaluating the situation. The purpose of these practices are to improve their decisionmaking in playing football, gain knowledge of the game and game-situations, and hopefully turning the users into better players. Especially useful for younger players, as older players have experienced more decision-making situations themselves without the help of VR. During the ages of 15 and 16, most of a player’s tactical skills are developed, in this age-group VR can contribute a lot. But also when a new player arrives to his new club, the period to adapt to the team can be reduced with the use of VR technology.
However, only using VR to become the next Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic or Messi shouldn’t be enough. Real life exercise, training and playing matches will always benefit your cognitive capabilities the most, e.g. how fast to perform certain movements. The same goes for the physical development of gaining strength and endurance. VR only helps to improve the players “game intelligence” and should merely be used for this purpose. Finally, applying these techniques only works when a vast database of game footage is available, this will only be feasible for the biggest clubs in a small league like the Dutch one, increasing the gap between the top and the bottom of the table and decreasing competitiveness. But stakes are high in football as a lot of money is involved, so I think the use of VR in football, as well as other sports, will become more and more important.
It’s an interesting development in sports and the next Messi might be improving his football skills with a VR headset on right now.
Reference:
http://nos.nl/artikel/2138978-virtualrealitybril-moet-jonge-voetballer-beter-laten-voetballen.html
Interesting article! I saw this story on the news as well. I believe it could be of huge help for making tactical choices although I believe that most tactical skills are gained by real life experience. I am very curious how this trend will evolve and whether VR in football will become available for us fans as well. It would be very intersting to see if we can see the impact of the use of VR on the field. Do you believe we will see players make better tactical decisions in the near future of don’t you think the impact of VR will be this big?
Hi Bas, thank you for your post. I think virtual reality can truly contribute to soccer player’s performances, but I think the player’s given talent will always be the most important aspect of the quality of that player. It is interesting to see how team managers work together with data analytics trying to improve the overall play of their team, however still most of their training includes the old fashioned way of training. Question marks should also be placed at the effectivity of VR availability: will Messi (who won the award for world’s best player 4 times) truly listen to a simple computer advice that says he should pass the ball more often? I think he will more likely rely on his instinct.
Hi Bas, really interesting article! Where I think this technology will really be beneficial is in game strategy. A major challenge for football teams is to assess competitors’ weaknesses and strengths before a game. As VR is a more immersive experience than traditional ways of assessing teams such as watching back games on a laptop screen, it can be expected to be more effective and efficient. I think that as soon as FIFA will be available in VR as well, and player data becomes even more realistic, it could become more and more of a necessity for trainers and players to practice and experience different tactics, similar to racing simulators are now.