Sports Technology Market Analysis Report By Technology Type, By Sports, By Region And Segment Forecasts From 2019 To 2025

Industry Insights

The global sports technology market size was worth USD 9.80 billion in 2018. The market is projected to expand at 20.3% CAGR from 2019 to 2025. There has been significant growth in the sports industry over the last few years. The number of sports tournaments has increased considerably, thereby, offering a lucrative opportunity for market players to invest. The integration of technologies in sports has led to data-driven sports culture.

Sports stadia have seen a massive overhaul in the recent past and this has enhanced viewer experience, smart parking, security, and operational efficiency to a great extent. Further, the growing adoption of IoT in sports is anticipated to be a key driver for market growth. Owners of the smart stadia are offering mobile applications to viewers, which help them in relocating their seating arrangement and parking space conveniently.

The growing need to improve the viewers' experience and upcoming sports mega-events are projected to supplement the demand for this market over the forecast period. The rapid adoption of IoT for the better management of stadium infrastructure is anticipated to bode well for market growth. AI-based sports technologies are being incorporated in searching for new talents, reducing injuries, and enhance individual performance. Further, the legalization of betting in sports in the United States cities such as New York, New Jersey, Iowa, Illinois, and others is predicted to augment the market growth.

Additionally, the use of AI and big data has ensured effective management of other sports-related activities such as athlete training, sponsorship activations, online ticketing, and other events. The development of innovative sports technologies has resulted in increasing the performance of athletes. For example, Major League Soccer (MLS) uses the Adidas miCoach Elite system to evaluate performance parameters of athletes such as distance, speed, power, and acceleration.

However, the high initial cost required and the long time needed to evaluate actual ROI are projected to restrain the market growth. Additionally, the intricacy involved in replacing the existing legacy system is likely to impede the market growth over the forecast duration.

Technology Type Insights

On the basis of technology, the sports technology market is bifurcated into the smart stadium, e-sports, analytics and statistics, and devices. Of them, the smart stadium segment held the largest share of 57.4% in 2018. Digital transformation has ensured benefits to both stadium owners and spectators. The concept of the smart stadium allows the integration of various technologies for ticket management, determining parking space, seat up-gradation, and crowd management. Additionally, it involves Wi-Fi connectivity, food ordering, merchandise purchasing, smart lighting, and several other activities.

In 2018, the wearable device accounted for the largest share in the device segment and is further projected to occupy considerable market share over the next few years. Sensors and wearable devices can be easily integrated into various accessories like garments, shoes, wristwear, and eyeglasses. The growth of the e-sport segment is driven by advertisement and sponsorship.

Sports Insights

By sports, the market is bifurcated into baseball, cricket, ice hockey, soccer, American rugby/football, and others. Soccer is one of the most popular sports as it enjoys its viewership across the world. In 2018, soccer was the largest segment with 15.1% of the share in the market. Sports technologies are used to make an informed decision on the fitness of players. For example, Video Assistant Referee (VAR) was used in FIFA World Cup 2018 to assist referees on the field with a controversial decision.

The basketball category is likely to grow at a CAGR of 21.0% from 2019 to 2025. Various wearable technologies based companies are emphasizing on automation of data analysis and offering insightful information pertaining to parameters like heart rate and speed. For example, a sensor-based platform ShotTacker captures performance and stats analytics. Additionally, key players such as WHOOP and STATSports Group are focusing on developing innovative means to incorporate wearable technologies in sports such as basketball, thereby, supplementing the market growth.

Regional Insights

In 2018, Europe accounted for the largest share in the sports technology market with 30.1%. The rise in the number of sports leagues and increasing adoption of various technologies in-stadia are attributing to the growth of this region. Additionally, the rising trend of BYOD and increasing demand for superior viewing experience are further driving the European market growth. The region has over 1,200 stadia and it is expected to account for a considerable share in the market for the smart stadium.

On the other hand, APAC is projected to grow at 23.0% CAGR from 2019 to 2025 and the market is anticipated to be worth USD 10,802.33 million by the end of 2025. Various sports governing bodies such as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), New Zealand Cricket, Indian Premier League (IPL), and others use advanced sports technologies to host a number of tournaments. Additionally, countries such as India, Australia, Japan, and China are witnessing the construction and renovation of stadia, which, in turn, is estimated to drive market growth.

Impact of COVID-19

The recent outbreak of COVID-19 has adversely affected the growth of the sports technology market. Following the outbreak of this pandemic, several sports events such as the Tokyo summer Olympics, Euro Cup football, Indian Premier League, NBA, and others have either been postponed or canceled. The postponement of these major sports events has delayed the growth of this market. However, with relaxing lockdown measures, these events are scheduled for a later date while some events are taking place without the audience. The summer Olympics has been postponed to 2021 while other events are expected to commence by this year-end or early next year. Thus, these scheduled events are projected to bolster the growth of the market in the near future.

Sports Technology Market Share Insights

Leading market players are Cisco Systems, Inc., Fujitsu, IBM Corporation, Apple Inc., Oracle, Sony Corporation, Garmin Ltd, Fitbit, Inc., and SAP SE among others. These players are underrating several strategic initiatives to expand their presence in the market. For example, a Fujitsu subsidiary RUN.EDGE started its operation in Japan in 2018. This company is aiming to offer ICT-enabled image search and image analysis services.

Further, the rising number of events and huge prize money involved offer lucrative opportunities to the market players. Owing to domination by a few leading players, the market is consolidated in nature. Key players have upped their investment in R&D activities to gain a competitive edge in the market. For example, a leading wearable technology player Fitbit collaborated with Google to boost innovation in wearable technology.

Report Scope

Segments Covered in the Report

This report forecasts revenue growth at global, regional, and country levels, and provides an analysis of the latest industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2015 to 2025. For the purpose of this study, Million Insights has segmented the global sports technology market report on the basis of technology type, sports, and region:

• Technology Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2015 - 2025)
    • Devices
        • Wearables
        • Digital Signage
        • Camera
    • Smart Stadium
        • Software
            • Stadium & Public Security
            • Building Automation
            • Event Management
            • Others
        • Services
    • Analytics & Statistics
    • E-sports
        • Tickets & Merchandise
        • Sponsorship & Advertisement
        • Others

• Sports Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2015 - 2025)
    • American Football/Rugby
    • Baseball
    • Basketball
    • Cricket
    • Golf
    • Ice Hockey
    • Tennis
    • Soccer
    • Others

• Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2015 - 2025)
    • North America
        • U.S.
        • Canada
        • Mexico
    • South America
        • Brazil
        • Argentina
        • Rest of South America
    • Europe
        • Germany
        • U.K.
        • France
        • Italy
        • Rest of Europe
    • The Asia Pacific
        • China
        • India
        • Japan
        • South Korea
        • Rest of Asia Pacific
    • Middle East & Africa