May you have a glorious summertime Friday.
And now we pivot to the return of the Future of the Game Showcase for the MLS, which will feature many sports tech startups (and a couple of SBJ 10 Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies). — Ethan Joyce
In today’s edition of Power Up:
- Future of the Game Showcase returns at MLS All-Star Game
- LiveLike secures $3.5M growth credit facility from Bigfoot Capital
- WMT Digital revitalizes app for WNBA’s Storm
Future of the Game Showcase returns at MLS All-Star Game
MLS will again hold its Future of the Game Showcase during All-Star Week this summer, hosting technology demos on July 22 and 23 at Q2 Stadium. The showcase debuted last year and is a tentpole of the league’s ongoing tech-forward strategy.
Of the eight companies scheduled to participate, six are startups who took part in either the first or second cohort of the MLS Innovation Lab, the league’s incubation program to pilot emerging tech products.
The MLS Next All-Star contest will feature three pieces of technology, with data on the pitch transmitted in real-time to the showcase. No single player will wear more than one, but groups of players will have:
- Oliver Sports soccer-specific GPS trackers.
- Soccerment smart shin guards providing performance data.
- Lubu Technologies smart insoles to track ground forces and movement.
Also participating will be:
- Edge Sound Research: Live immersive sound product.
- Wicket: Facial recognition technology.
- Camb.ai: AI translation of the match in multiple languages.
- Sportec Solutions: MLS data partner to demo its AI Live Ticker and Data Story Finder with storytelling and visualizations for fan engagement.
- OneCourt: Tactile tablet helping blind and low vision fans track the game through vibrations.
LiveLike secures $3.5M growth credit facility from Bigfoot Capital
Fan engagement technology platform LiveLike has secured a $3.5M credit facility from Bigfoot Capital as it eyes its next phase of growth. LiveLike CEO Miheer Walavalkar called the capital infusion an “endorsement of the long-term vision” of the business in a note to SBJ, adding it will be channeled towards supporting international clients, growing the company’s staff in key markets and investing in innovation for partners.
“We’re especially focused on scaling our AI-powered engagement tools that help clients deepen fan interaction in more dynamic and intelligent ways,” Walavalkar said. “These tools are already delivering significant efficiencies across live sports and entertainment platforms, and we believe they’ll be foundational to the next era of fan-first experiences.”
LiveLike’s sports-focused services include rewards programs and interactive livestream add-ons, among other offerings. The company now has 40 clients, with nearly half of those international.
WMT Digital revitalizes app for WNBA’s Storm
The Storm have named WMT Digital as the developer of its recently overhauled app, giving the technology firm its first WNBA client and further expanding its pro sports footprint.
The new Storm app includes streamlined ticketing deployment thanks to an integration with Ticketmaster, as well as integrations with the WNBA data feeds for up-to-date access to news, schedules and rosters. The overall enhancements went live for fans ahead of the WNBA regular season in May and was built in a three-month window after reaching an agreement on the project in February.
Storm CMO Will Gulley picked WMT as their new app developer because the company could quickly fix essential user experiences like ticketing management. The startup was also willing to work out unique solutions, like folding in augmented reality experiences and a pregame light show that incorporates attendees’ phones via fan experience company Cue Audio. “We needed somebody that could grow with us,” Gulley told SBJ.
WMT’s initial foundation started in the college space, but the company has built out more of a pro sports footprint. The Storm join WMT clients Player 15 Group, Rock Entertainment Group and the Mets, among others. WMT works with 40% of schools in the Power Four conferences. WMT founder & CEO Andres Focil was also named to SBJ’s most recent Forty Under 40 class.
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