technology

This department is responsible for the integrated management of the Liga Portugal technological infrastructure and for assisting the organisation of its competitions.

With a special focus on conducting digital transformation, we build process optimisation solutions with a strategic vision and high performance and productivity rates, always aiming for performance and results of excellence.

The concept of innovation allied to the responsibility of maintaining an identity marked by transparency and credibility, are principles with which our team is guided to implement each project.

With the sustained growth of the entire structure of Liga Portugal, the management of the League's physical IT assets, the help desk/technical support, the support in collecting and managing databases, the support in managing mobile applications and the management of devices, are some of the subjects that will deserve special attention from this department.

As a central management tool for all Liga Portugal information, IntraLiga has modules that allow confluence between the various Liga platforms. As in the previous year, we will continue to consolidate, modernise, and optimise all its processes, in order to ensure increasingly superior effectiveness in data management.

Following the public announcement by Microsoft, who will stop supporting some solutions that underpin our platform, a restructuring process was initiated that involves the migration and upgrade of the database version used, as well as the document storage solution. Aware of the urgency and sensitivity of this issue, we aim to provide a rapid response that guarantees compliance with all security and stability requirements, with the allocation of exclusive resources for all operations that will be carried out.

Positioned at the forefront of sports technology, e-Liga’s main objective was to facilitate the processing of information and eliminate, as much as possible, the occurrence of errors by dematerialising the documentation of professional football matches. Being an ecosystem supported by various platforms, with direct and harmonious connection to Intraliga, this structure is well consolidated and has been a key tool in the registration and secure transfer of data between the sports agents and the repositories of Liga Portugal.

The technological evolution and the increase of features that boost and support the activity of these same sports professionals, has been a continuous concern of the technology department of Liga Portugal. A good example is the constant requests received by the Sports Societies that culminate in technical developments, contributing to the aforementioned growth.

However, and despite this constant functional progress, we are going to propose a profound reformulation of the whole application. With the successive increase in the android operating system versions and the ageing of the equipment used, we must anticipate the modernisation of our application in order to ensure that its compatibility is not compromised in this system and in future equipment.

Federation. The implementation of this connection between the two organisations will continue to be dedicated to data relating to registrations, match reports and discipline.

For the next season, the presence of trainee delegates is planned to be introduced for monitoring and training in a competition environment, as well as the provision of lists to support the management of nominations and the approach to the individual evaluation model.

For this portal, the following modules are planned to be developed:

• Financial Licensing Module: Currently in the functional testing phase, its development and subsequent implementation will continue.

Our platform for managing the entire process of enrolment and registration of contracts is currently in a state of stable development, which will allow us to dedicate a period of time to developing new functionalities and improving the performance of some procedural flows. Some lists of data supporting this activity will also be made available.

Consolidating the e-Liga will also be based on the continuous implementation and evolution of various components. The scale of these solutions and the functional range they will cover will have a notable impact on the digital process that has been developed.

This project aims to implement the mechanism of the data bridge between Liga Portugal and the Portuguese Football

• Infrastructure Licensing Module: Last season we implemented this new module that dematerialised the entire licensing process in this area, allowing clubs to digitally register applications, insert and consult documentation, receive the results of inspections, etc. After the collection and analysis of the first year, the functionalities will be improved where necessary, based on the results of this first season of application.

• Media Accreditation Module: The management of Media accreditation requests currently has, in a centralised way, a channel that serves the whole communication process between Liga Portugal, the Clubs, the Media and the professionals in this area. We will continue its development process to make it more comprehensive and able to respond to all needs.

It is intended to continue the process of analysis and development of the accreditation platform, which started last season, and that will allow mechanising the access to main areas of stadiums, namely technical areas, with the inclusion of QR codes in the generated credentials.

Improvement and standardisation of the platform responsible for notifications via email and SMS.

The assessment of data and its use in decision-making and in the strategic positioning of institutions is unavoidable. In this sense, we will act as a point of contact between external suppliers and the strategic planning department, supporting the projects that arise from these relationships.

It is the goal of the technology department to ensure that Liga Portugal's platforms are continually updated to meet the objectives, which arise during the season in the CRM/FRM area.

It is the objective of the technology department to ensure that Liga Portugal's platforms are continually updated to meet evolving objectives, which arise during the season in the CRM/FRM area.

• Monitoring the utilisation process of the Infrastructure Portal, which besides the aforementioned will also include the technical data sheets of all the stadiums, in order to make them available on the delegate's tablet and in the security reports, thus optimising the reporting of irregular situations. Project in coordination with the Competitions Department;

• To install in all web-based platforms of Liga Portugal, institutional promotion and/or advertising spaces, with the possibility of defining quotas and measuring impressions and clicks.

This project will ensure that the Liga has the tools to actively promote its campaigns and/or negotiate digital counterparts with sponsors and partners;

• Maintenance and constant updating of the Liga Portugal websites;

• Maintenance of the Liga Portugal APP and the related platforms;

• Proceeding with the implementation of a CRM platform, and management of contact databases, target audiences and fans in the Liga Portugal ecosystem;

• Assistance and support to the Monitoring of the Competitions Licensing Manual;

• Monitoring of the implementation process of the media accreditation module in professional competition matches.

Liga Portugal will continue the improvement of the already created Quality and Development Environment, by professionalising and increasing the availability of the solutions developed.

Minimising the risk of errors and constraints in accessing and maintaining existing platforms will continue to be the main goal of using this environment.

Information security, particularly in terms of data protection and classified information, is vital in the relationship between Liga Portugal, the Sports Societies and other parties involved.

Security in digital environments is a complex challenge. We can think of different types and levels of security. In the age of information, data protection is a task set for everyone.

The digital revolution has significantly increased exposure to cyber risks. Not only can cyberattacks block access to confidential information, but they can also cause harm to organisations and their staff. This includes, for example, copyright infringements, disclosure of sensitive data and company assets, or even the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regarding data protection.

The challenge is significant, but Liga Portugal is committed to working on the construction of information platforms that raise awareness among all employees and stakeholders regarding the importance of following good digital security practices.

This department will implement, in the course of this season, an external "Security Operational Center" (SOC), which will allow it to respond in real-time to events of attempted cyber attacks and constantly monitor all activity with an alert system.

We will continue to analyse the vulnerabilities of internal and external platforms to avoid unauthorised access to them.

Also in order to protect Liga Portugal from potential security threats, the technology department will develop the following activities:

• Development of security mechanisms in all Liga Portugal platforms;

• Development of physical and logical barriers on Liga Portugal facilities;

• Ensure that Liga Portugal and its platforms comply with the ISO27001 norms;

• Technological support in the monitorisation of the GDPR.

As the last point, and because we believe that training is the basis for the safe use of digital tools, we will propose specialised training in cybersecurity for advanced users. These trainings will be aimed at the IT department staff of our Sport Societies, who will be able to develop skills and implement intervention plans in their structures.