Highlights: PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS – Player Recruitment SPOTLIGHT – Latin America BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT – U.S. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT – Analysis Platform
Newsletter – Autumn 2011
DELIVERING PERFORMANCE INSIGHTS
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FOREWORD Over the past 12 months we have seen exciting client wins, new product development, and ongoing HR investment in line with our growing customer base and service offering. Specifically, we have welcomed a number of new employees including Matthew Jones and Neil Hutchinson to our product and operations team. We have also demonstrated the ongoing training and development invested by Prozone to ensure the transformation of undergraduate sports scientists and performance analysts into the real world of industry through placements and full time positions such as Lewis Rhodes’ recent appointment at Stoke City FC. Our expertise in performance analysis runs deep throughout the business and this foundation remains a key driver for our service orientation. Our clients remain at the heart of what we do and shape our innovation for the future of the industry. It’s for this reason that Prozone continues to be the chosen provider and partner to an expanding global family of customers. In an industry where results and high performance are extremely important, we care passionately about making our clients successful through delivering effective performance insights and world-class service, based on expertise and intelligence. For another year running we have renewed and extended services with a record number of teams in the UK, including Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Fulham, Stoke City and Wigan Athletic. In addition to strengthening our UK position we are extremely proud to announce the addition of the Argentina National Team and AFA which further demonstrates our expansion in the U.S. and Latin America. After the frantic European summer transfer deadline day [see Player Recruitment Analysis on page 3] we are looking forward to another exciting season, and as always, we wish all our teams across the world the best in the run up to the New Year.
Barry McNeill Managing Director
CONTENTS P2 P3
FOREWORD
P4-5
SPOTLIGHT – LATIN AMERICA Argentine FA partners with Prozone Prozone in Chile 2011 Copa América
P6-7
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT - U.S. University of Florida College Soccer
PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS Player Recruitment
P8
PARTNERSHIPS Provelop
P9
INDUSTRY EVENTS NSCAA MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference
P10-12 PRODUCT RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT Analysis Platform RECRUITER
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PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS Premier League Summer Transfer Trends Constrained by one of the most severe economic downturns for decades and restricted to four months of the year in which to conduct their transfer business, rarely has it been so important for football clubs to have a clearly defined recruitment strategy. To focus on the much talked about English Premier League; the summer 2011 transfer window saw English clubs spend £485m despite the inclement financial conditions, a remarkable 33% increase on the outlay during the same period last year. While these figures demonstrate that the forthcoming implementation of UEFA’s ‘Financial Fair Play’ initiative is unlikely to reduce the total amount spent by teams, they do highlight the polarised nature of the Premier League’s economic map; Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United accounting for 66% of the division’s expenditure between them. The second most expensive transfer window in Premier League history, this summer saw clubs do more of their business domestically, the figure for transfer fees paid to overseas clubs being down by a quarter on 2010. Indeed, of the £485m spent, £165m was used to buy English players, perhaps an indication of the home-grown player rule taking affect. There have also been marked differences in the nature of the deals which were conducted this year as opposed to 2010, as Blake Wooster, Head of Business Development at Prozone, points out; “In a trend which reflects the budgetary constraints many clubs are faced with, this summer saw free transfers constitute 28.2% of all deals made, the most common they have ever been. Alongside this development, we have also seen a significant reduction in the number of loans, their 10.9% share of total deals reflecting the greater need teams have to raise funds through sales.” 100
TYPE OF TRANSFER KEY: Loan Free
80
Transfer
70 60 50 40 30 20 10
The data collected in 2010 also gives an indication as to the best time to conduct business during the window. The teams which finished the season in the bottom half of the table bought, on average, 36% of their acquisitions on the final day of the window, waiting until the very last moment to secure over a third of their targets. Conversely, the teams which finished fifth to eighth made just 14.2% of their signings on deadline day, a statistic which seems to support the widely-held view that teams perform better if new players are given time to settle. The data history suggests that those teams dealing late won’t perform as well as those who bought earlier (in relative terms). Prozone will continue to analyse performance to provide further insights into the impact of this summer’s player moves on team dynamics; and perhaps whether, the chasing pack to the Champions League contingent, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur – clubs which brought players in earlier in the summer – can close the gap on last season’s leading quartet. Also interesting when looking at early performances of last season’s top 4; Arsenal – a team which made several late signings - have until now been under pressure by a series of poor results whereas Manchester United, who did most of their business in the off-season, have started the new campaign in fine form and appear, for the moment, to be proving right the idea that teams play to a higher standard when given time to gel.
Sum - 11
Jan - 11
Sum - 10
Jan - 10
Sum - 09
Jan - 09
Sum - 08
Jan - 08
Sum - 07
Jan - 07
0 Sum - 06
Percentage of Total Transfers In
90
Using Prozone’s player performance ratings we are able to empirically demonstrate that players who came to the Premier League from overseas in the summer of 2010 had better average ratings over the course of the season than those who moved between clubs within the division (57.17 to 51.08). With domestic players often being sold at vastly inflated prices, it could be said that managers should possibly look abroad if they want true value for money, that being despite the conventional wisdom holding that English-based players will adapt to new clubs far more easily.
With the help of Prozone’s expertise in the field of recruitment, clubs are able to subject the market to increasingly detailed analysis and gain advantages over their rivals when it comes to the finer details of transfer business. Further analysis available in the Prozone Player Recruitment whitepaper to be presented at Leaders in Performance Conference 2011, and available online at: www.prozonesports.com/summertransfers2011
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SPOTLIGHT – LATIN AMERICA
ARGENTINE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION PARTNERS WITH PROZONE
Following on from our partnership with Prozone representatives PlayFE and the opening of an office in Buenos Aires, the last 12 months have seen Prozone expand our operations and reputation in Latin America through a series of agreements with clubs, broadcasters and national associations. The Asociación del Fútbol Argentino (AFA) have become the first national association in Latin America to work with Prozone supporting the growth of football at the national team level and recently agreeing a league-wide deal providing all Primera División clubs access to indepth technical and tactical analysis from Prozone. The deal with the AFA will see clubs such as Boca Juniors, Colón and Independiente receive a combination of PROZONE3 and MATCHVIEWER analysis of all Argentine Primera División matches. This analysis will also be used during weekly AFA television shows and form the basis for articles in the AFA’s monthly magazine.
Following an in-depth training programme held at the AFA Headquarters to provide full technical and physical analysis training to managers, coaches, and technical staff, and to facilitate the implementation of the technology across the league; Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro President, Carlos Abdo, commented on the benefits to all levels of the clubs; “The incorporation of Prozone’s technology will mean a big leap in quality regarding the performance analysis of Argentine football. This system as used in Europe will add a further level of professionalism to decisions, not only from the point of view of the technical and coaching staff but also to those of the management at the highestlevel.” Fernando Martinez, Director of PlayFE, had this to say about AFA’s relationship with Prozone: “South American football has always played an important part in the development of the global game – not least through the success of Argentina’s World Cup teams and the development of some of the best players in the world. Similarly, Prozone Sports have acted as pioneers in the next generation use of analysis tools to support future growth in athlete and team development. This partnership is a fantastic opportunity for AFA to continue to develop its teams and support new cutting-edge projects within different business areas.”
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PROZONE IN CHILE Our newly established partnerships in Chile have a similar wide-ranging mandate as those in Argentina. We now offer full match analysis to both the national team and a number of the country’s leading clubs, as well as having provided real-time analysis to Canal de Fútbol - Chile’s leading football broadcaster. After making it through to the knockout stages of the 2010 World Cup, with good wins against Honduras and Switzerland and a narrow 2-1 defeat to eventual champions Spain, Chile prepared for the 2011 Copa América by signing an agreement for Prozone to provide a full performance analysis service for the Men’s National Team under the guidance of Claudio Borghi.
When asked about his vision for performance analysis within Chile, Borghi replied; “Prozone will add great value to Chilean football at the national, professional league and international levels. I trust that Prozone analysis will allow my coaching staff to monitor performance in a precise and objective way and prepare for upcoming matches better than we ever have before.” The last 12 months have seen Prozone forge fruitful partnerships with two of Chile’s leading club sides – Colo-Colo and Unión Española. Between them the two clubs have won the Chilean Primera División 35 times and it is this requisite for continued success that has lead both teams to work with Prozone. According to Johnny Ashwell, Unión Española’s General Manager; “Recent increases in the degree of competitiveness and the use of technology in the football industry mean that clubs who are serious about competing at a high standard need to be dedicated to performance analysis. Choosing to work with Prozone will not only give us the tools to provide detailed technical, tactical and physical analysis to our coaching staff, but also provide value to our management team. Unión Española takes great pride in being one of the first clubs in South America to be using the Prozone system.” Alberto Gutiérrez, who has been charged with advancing the analysis of all Colo-Colo players and teams as well as identifying and monitoring player acquisition targets, had this to say about working with Prozone; “Prozone are the global leaders in performance analysis. They provide products and services for every sector of the club. We at Colo-Colo needed a flexible system that would allow us to gain performance insights from multiple levels, from youth teams to the first team, as well as throughout Chile and the region. Prozone was the obvious choice to create a bespoke solution to meet our needs.”
ANALYSIS OF THE COPA AMÉRICA FOR CANAL DE FÚTBOL
An increasing number of broadcasters worldwide are looking at performance data to increase the validity and objectivity of their live and postmatch analysis. Chile’s leading football broadcaster – Canal de Fútbol – were amongst the first to support their broadcast and online coverage with Prozone in-game and post match analysis, providing enhanced game coverage and consumer experience of the 2011 Copa América. Prozone analysis of each of the 26 games in the tournament that showcases some of the best players in South America, provided real-time technical and tactical performance analysis as it happened; including player and team data, minute by minute events and live tournament match score updates, as well as extensive post-match data, video and analysis via MATCHVIEWER from the 12 competing teams in Argentina. Reflecting on a year that has seen huge developments in performance analysis in Latin American football, Andrew Opatkiewicz, Prozone Business Development Manager for the Americas, has this to say: “With the recent signings of AFA, ANFP, Unión Española and Colo-Colo, we are seeing clear signs that the region is hungry for performance analysis tools. Prozone’s full range of products and services allow any organization - whether that’s a federation, a club or a broadcaster - unrivalled performance insights.”
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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT U.S.
FLORIDA GATORS CHOOSE PROZONE3
Florida Gators Head Coach, Becky Burleigh commented;
In a landmark agreement for U.S. collegiate soccer, the University of Florida are the first school to install our world leading PROZONE3 performance analysis solution.
“Being able to analyze our games is vitally important to the development of our players and our team. I feel that Prozone gives us a depth of analysis that is cutting edge. The animation and physical analysis that PROZONE3 offers will enhance our players’ understanding of the tactical and physical dimensions that are vital for top level performance. As we gather more and more information we know this can only help in preparing our team to play at the highest level. We are thrilled to be part of the Prozone team.”
The current Southeastern Conference Division champions will utilize PROZONE3 for all home games at Pressley Field this fall, providing unrivalled technical and physical insight into player and team performance.
Prozone’s U.S. Operations Manager, Stewart Mairs, added; “The agreement with Florida Women represents a significant step in U.S college soccer towards the need of a deeper level of performance information. With the SEC’s objective to improve performance standards across the league, and a growing Prozone collegiate client list, this is a great platform for the development of soccer in the region.”
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COLLEGE SOCCER: SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE Prozone are pleased to announce its second conference wide deal in the U.S. with the Women’s Southeastern Conference (SEC). This succeeds the renewal of the Men’s Big East Conference who will continue to use Prozone’s interactive MATCHVIEWER service for analysis of conference games in 2011. As part of the recent agreement to offer leaguewide analysis – 11 of the 12 teams will have access to all SEC games as part of the centralised deal.
Jon Lipsitz, Head Coach of the University of Kentucky had this to say; “Prozone has literally changed the way that we analyze film and player performance. With Prozone, we can do even more to help our players accentuate their strengths and work on their weaknesses. Having the SEC, as a group, sign on with Prozone shows our united effort to make the SEC the top women’s soccer conference in the country.” Matt Mott, Head Coach of the University of Mississippi commented; “The Prozone Software is an excellent educational tool for our players and an invaluable resource for scouting.” Brian Lee, Head Coach of Louisiana State University added; “Prozone has been a great addition to our program this year. It is very user friendly and the information that we get from Prozone saves us time and makes us a more efficient staff.” Todd Bramble, Head Coach of the University of Alabama added; “The detailed analysis and how it is directly connected with video is a powerful coaching tool. Our players love it, whether we are using it for individual, small group or team education.” Shelly Smith, Head Coach of the University of South Carolina also added; “We are excited about the opportunity to work with Prozone. The detailed analysis is a great resource for coaches to work with players on their personal game, and to give them a true picture of their performance and effectiveness in match play.”
PROZONE SETS STANDARDS ACROSS COLLEGE SOCCER In addition to the SEC league wide agreement, Prozone are working with 50+ Colleges and Universities, including:
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PARTNERSHIPS PROVELOP
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT Prozone and Provelop, leaders in the field of neuroscience conditioning and the psychology of performance profiling, are partnering to develop the worlds first 360 degree player specific development program in compliance with the English Premier League’s Elite Player Performance Plan. Utilising Prozone and Provelop’s academically validated systems; the collective assessment will bring analysis of both hard and soft skills together providing the most comprehensive view of a player’s performance profile. As part of the Premier League’s commitment to defining best practice that sets the standard for the future delivery of youth development across professional football in England, this unique partnership is at the forefront of combining sports science with the key psychological performance indicators necessary for learning & development, and ultimately provides both players and coaches with the tools and strategies necessary to maximise performance.
Darren Royle, Prozone’s Head of UK Sales and Marketing commented on the partnership; “Identifying that it wasn’t just the technical, tactical, and physical skills that a player needed to progress; there’s also a significant mental component to be incorporated and Provelop’s psychological profiling expertise are the perfect synergy to our own high level performance data.”
Founder of Provelop, Tony Faulkner, added; “The Provelop Profile plays an essential role in the psychological development of any athlete. Combining this with Prozone performance data really does provide the tools and edge that teams and players need to maximise performance potential.” For more information on Provelop please visit www.provelop.org
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INDUSTRY EVENTS January 2012 - NSCAA Convention
March 2012 – MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference The 2011 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics conference back in March saw Prozone’s Head of Business Development, Blake Wooster feature as a panelist on the conference’s Soccer Analytics Panel, focusing on the increasing role analytics play in soccer and new technologies.
Following its success in 2011 Prozone continues its partnership with the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) as the world’s largest single-sport coaches’ organization convention moves to its home town Kansas City for 2012. As Official Analysis Partner for the second year running, Prozone will again be exhibiting and supporting the convention as well as presenting a number of clinic sessions throughout. A success of the 2011 convention in Baltimore, Prozone clinic presenter Lesle Gallimore provided unique insights into her chosen topic of discussion, ‘switching the point of attack’, through Prozone MATCHVIEWER; and as she enters her 18th season at the University of Washington she looks to continue the winning tradition she has established as Head Coach;
In 2012, the conference to be held at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston is now in its 6th year, and looks to provide a forum for industry professionals, executives, leading researchers and students to discuss the increasing role of analytics in the sports industry, and enhance understanding of the sports business world. This year’s event brings together a programme of speakers that includes NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA owners, coaches, industry leaders, and featured speakers including; NBA Deputy Commissioner & COO Adam Silver; Mark Cuban Owner of the Dallas Mavericks; & Co-Founder & Chairman of HDNet; Brian Burke President & General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs; Bill Simmons, ESPN Columnist; Daryl Morley General Manager & Managing Director Basketball Operations, Houston Rockets; and many more. www.sloansportsconference.com
“Prozone gives us the ability at the University of Washington to take our game, team, and player analysis to a whole different level. To be able to use video analysis to deliver a clear message to our team in an interactive way is an invaluable learning tool. As an NSCAA Academy Staff member being able to use Prozone is an important part of our coaching education.” And as we look ahead to preparations for the 2012 Convention in Kansas, Prozone’s Business Development Manager for the Americas, Andrew Opatkiewicz, explains why coach education is at the forefront of Prozone’s U.S. business development; “The NSCAA convention is the most important event of the year in promoting the game of soccer and the education of coaches. Performance analysis is a key area in coach education, as the importance of effective communication between the coach and player is critical to player development. Exhibiting at the convention and integrating our products into the core sessions provides an excellent opportunity to showcase the Prozone brand and provide unique performance insights to help develop soccer in the U.S.” www.nscaa.com/annual.php
To arrange a personal meeting with Prozone at either of these events, email enquiries@prozonesports.com.
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PRODUCT, RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
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NEXT GENERATION ANALYSIS PLATFORM Our position as the world’s leading performance analysis provider is due in no small part to the ongoing development and refinement of our performance analysis products and technology. This is achieved through direct consultation with our community and the huge number of coaches, analysts, sports scientists, clubs, federations and media customers that we work with worldwide. This unique opportunity enables us to capture and understand real customer needs and requirements, which in turn help us to identify areas of our offering that can be developed to serve our clients more effectively. According to Prozone’s Product Manager, Dan Mason; “It is important to innovate and embrace new and emerging technologies, and equally important to deliver products and services that are effective and relevant for our users. We ensure this by listening to the needs of coaches, managers and analysts on a daily basis.”
DRIVEN BY THE NEEDS OF THE MARKET Through this ongoing client consultation we’ve identified a need for more flexible delivery of match analysis data in order to integrate other performance datasets within a professional sports environment. Our consultation has identified a number of requirements with regards to the wider and more holistic information management and interpretation - examples include:
These requirements demonstrate an emerging trend towards a more 360 degree evaluation of player and team performance. With this in mind, Prozone are currently evaluating the range of requirements within the context of a new age player centric asset, data interpretation and management system, which enables clients to house, link, manage, interpret and communicate performance data from a single secure online delivery platform. This in turn will make it simpler, faster and more cost effective to update our services through the provision and integration of emerging technology. LEVEL 5 Consultancy
LEVEL 4 Data interpretation, statistical analysis and predictive analytics LEVEL 3 Administration and internal cross departmental communications platform LEVEL 2 Asset management through analysis, alerts and data synthesis via dashboard visualisations LEVEL 1 Data import, storage, linking and management
DATA COLLECTION
+ Internal communication of data and instructions + Optimisation and management of internal workflows + Quantification of player performance lifecycles + Objective and benchmarked player valuations + Psychological profiling and benchmarking of players
Technical/Tactical Psychological
Physiological Medical Contractual/Financial
WORKING WITH LEADING NAMES ACROSS THE INDUSTRY
+ Enhanced video management
Over the coming months we will be working closely with leading practitioners and service providers from all areas of the industry to advance our new performance analysis and delivery technology. Upon completion the new concept will likely be pioneered, and further developed, by working closely with our global network of teams, particularly in the English Premier League which regularly pioneers the introduction of innovative new technologies.
+ Predictive injury and performance modelling
According to Paul Neilson, Prozone’s Head of Business Operations;
+ Succession planning and recruitment + Quantification of training and match day loads
“Customer consultation and effective market research are crucial at this stage in order to ensure that we fully consider the evolving sports science and technology landscape, and develop a new product and technology platform which meets the current and future needs of our customers. It will allow us to deliver a superior level of service, making the data and products we provide more powerful, adaptable and flexible, and the maintenance and data hosting more cost effective helping us to expand into new sports and new markets worldwide.”
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PRODUCT UPDATE It is our continuing commitment at Prozone to develop our products and functionality to provide our customers with the most accurate performance analysis information available, through investing in product development and working closely with our clients to continually improve the service we offer.
RECRUITER: OPTIMISED
Clubs have been benefiting from extensive player data and video information, analytical tools and advanced comparison features, through Prozone’s online analytical player trading solution since its release over 12 months ago. With the latest RECRUITER development users, including Everton, Barcelona, Liverpool, Southampton, DC United & Sporting Kansas City, can now experience the quickest data searches and most intuitive Prozone experience to date. “RECRUITER has provided scouts and coaches with the ability to interrogate Prozone’s extensive game and player database; exploring individual player data, full match video and video highlights in order to make objective and better informed decisions on player trading through the use of accurate performance data.” Dan Mason, Product Manager - Prozone New features include: + Enhanced product interface + Improved functionality + Quicker searching + Personal player notepad creation + New data items + Pop-up player profiles + Performance information is now available for over 60,000 players from 47 of the biggest leagues and competitions in world football. For more information on Prozone RECRUITER visit: www.prozonesports.com or email: enquiries@prozonesports.com
Prozone Sports: Delivering Performance Insights
Head Office:
Regional Offices:
Image Credits:
Prozone Sports Ltd 3 Craven Court Millshaw Leeds LS11 8BN UK
Chicago, USA Barcelona, SPAIN Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA Dubai, UAE Doha, QATAR Tokyo, JAPAN Chennai, INDIA Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA São Paulo, BRAZIL St Petersburg, RUSSIA Warsaw, POLAND
P.1 Action Images/REUTERS/Santiago Pandolfi P.3 Action Images/REUTERS/Darren Staples P.4 Backpage Images/Chris Brunskill P.5 Action Images/REUTERS/Victor Ruiz Caballero [Left] P.5 Action Images/REUTERS/Marcos Brindicci [Right] P.6 University of Florida P.7 Louisiana State University P.8 Backpage Images/Javier Garcia P.9 NSCAA [Left] P.9 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference [Right]
T: +44 (0) 113 244 9296 E: enquiries@prozonesports.com W: www.prozonesports.com