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20 Oct 2014
‘Window of opportunity’ for sport to harness technology
By Tom Walker
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The report was commissioned by the SRA and compiled by the Future Foundation
Photo: SRA
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Sport should seize the moment and utilise “window of opportunity” to harness technology and get more people involved in sport, according to a new report.
The Future Trends - Innovating to Grow Participation in Sport report by the Future Foundation looks at how the physical inactivity crisis in the UK might be tackled through the adoption of technology and innovation and harnessing emerging consumer and lifestyle trends.
Among its suggestions, the report states that sport should be looking to improve not just its general use of technology and the way it gathers data, but also its understanding of the online arena and social media platforms.
It suggests that national governing bodies and other organisations and operators should – among other actions – be looking to track and encourage migration from networks like Facebook to more specialised platforms for more intimate conversations.
“These communities will be the home grounds for a new generation of sportspeople for whom networked technologies are not new and disruptive forces but long-established parts of everyday life,” the report claims.
“They are also a group at risk of falling off the radar.”
Commissioned by the Sports and Recreation Alliance (SRA), the report also looks at the advances made in data-gathering methods and technology in general, listing five key trends that sport as an industry needs to be aware of.
The five trends are:
• The Quantified Self – the use of technology to collect, analyse and interpret data about movement and performance.
• Game on – the incorporation of playfulness into mainstream products, services and retail contexts.
• Healthy hedonism – the increasing expectation that healthy behaviours should be fun. Consumers no longer want to make a choice between enjoyment and sensible choices.
• Performance perfection – the use of social media to broadcast views and experiences and interact with others with similar interests.
• Cult of the home – the increasing role that our living rooms play as attractive spaces in which to socialise and engage with sport and recreation.
Emma Boggis, chief executive of SRA, said: “By bringing five key trends into focus in our new Future Trends report, we hope to inspire sports delivery organisations to adopt and tap into cutting edge ways of getting the nation active.
“We know from many of our members that there are already some great examples of innovation in sport but there are opportunities to do more, particularly on a collaborative basis. We want to spark ideas that can then be harnessed and shared across sports, across the sector.”
To download and read the full report, click here. |
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