The most popular and largest football league in the United Kingdom, the Premier League, is switching to Apple's iPhones to monitor and decide offside calls via its latest contract with Genius Sports. Through this, Genius is leveraging its latest machine-learning models to analyze a game's play-by-play, and it will utilize iPhone cameras to spot these football law violations.
'Offside' calls remain notorious in the entire sport as it is one of the most confusing violations in football, with officials needing the best possible help they can get to properly spot and make the right calls.
Apple's iPhone Coming to Premier League to Spot Offside Calls
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Apple's iPhones have been tried and tested through the years for many functions, but it is now adding a new purpose to its list to help the U.K.'s Premier League in better spotting offside calls. This is through the Premier League's latest contract with Genius Sports, and the company announced that it will use iPhone cameras to monitor this specific call.
In an interview shared by The Verge, Genius' chief product officer Matt Fleckstein revealed that the company initially experimented with using mobile phone cameras to apply its Semi-Assisted Offside Technology (SAOT).
Fleckstein said that its employees were more familiar with iPhones and their software development, making it the phone of choice for its SAOT application. It was also regarded that it decided to move away from 4K cameras because they were expensive.
Genius Sports: AI Using iPhone Cameras to Determine Offside
Genius Sports claimed that its GeniusIQ, its machine-learning model, creates 3D renders of players, the game ball, and the offside wall in an instant, ready for whenever it is needed by officials. This system, paired with iPhone cameraswould help officials review game moments to help make the proper calls.
Premier League is now moving away from its reliance on virtual assistant referee (VAR) systems in favor of the GeniusIQ.
AI's Presence in Sports and Tech Development in Leagues
The ever-growing and evolving rules and regulations in sports are hard to follow, especially as some leagues immediately enforce this during games, and it sometimes leaves the audience and officials clueless. With the emergence of AI, many have adopted it for sports, and one of the best examples here is the recent Olympic Games Paris2024 using Intel's technology.
Moreover, AI is not only used for monitoring games and enforcing the rules of each league, but it also helps the management get the most out of their planning and preparations for their teams. There is a company called ai.io that has a system called "aiScout," and it helps a team's recruiters find their next athlete to sign, and has already been usedby teams in Major League Soccer (MLS).
Sports broadcasting networks and renowned entities have also incorporated artificial intelligence in different aspects, with the likes of Fox Sports previously embracing it to create more content in partnership with Google Cloud.
A new iteration of AI is being used for sports, but this time, for UK's top football organization, the Premier League, with its partnership with Genius Sports, also relies on iPhones to claim the right offside calls.
