In the world of sports, it’s almost as if a war rages between live events and home-bodied consumerism. Sheer entertainment value is placed on the front lines through various tried and true technologies.
The ongoing battle sees each party unleash new weapons in attempts to overpower the opposition: Super connected stadiums sway the fan toward ticket purchases, while 4K TVs sway them back toward the couch and higher ratings.
While not every technology is guaranteed to influence fans one way or the other (ahem, hello 3D TV), we have seen some major game changers recently.
Not only does GoPro wield the technical prowess to sway the home front, but they have partnerships suited up and ready to go as advanced support.
In a few more years, the brand that made cameras more versatile than a Swiss Army Knife will surely influence how fans watch their favorite sports.
This Isn’t Your Grandfather’s NHL
GoPro started its relationship with the NHL as a way for the league to provide supplemental broadcast footage. The partnership was really more promotional than anything.
That all changed with a recent extension between the two brands. The relationship has now transformed into something with substance.
This strategic move is all in favor of the homegrown hockey fan.
A GoPro is capable of creating video footage that’s more on the spectrum of surreal. It puts the viewer on an entirely new tier of experience.
Not only can viewers get a first person view of Zach Parise showing off some dangles, but watching P.K. Subban deke with the puck becomes even more of a dizzying feat.
A somewhat reticulating GoPro mounted to Henrik Lundqvist is actually the best thing since Nick Woodman came up with the idea in 2001 (Woodman no longer has to sleep in his Volkswagen van).
The only tragic part about this new partnership is the fact that the mini-bundles of HD tech will not be providing fans with live footage during games.
Sure, players and refs did wear them during the NHL All-Star Game. But it’s unrealistic to have players donning GoPros during the regular season.
Although it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect refs to rock a unicornian camera (heard it here first), fans won’t be seeing it too soon.
But outside, and in part because of hockey, GoPro is free to explore the sports world and insert their brand at will.
Formula 1 and GoPro: A Match Made for the Fan
In reality, Formula 1 is a sport dedicated to the nerd in everyone, especially us, SportTechies.
March 15th marks the start of the F1 season. Just watching one race will give you a sense of the mad amounts of technology loaded in each car.
The steering wheel alone boasts $50,000 of tech.
That being said, the sport has always done some unique things to keep viewers informed and entertained. An infrared view of the tires is not out of the norm.
GoPro would make welcome addition to the viewer experience. New views of the steering washing out in a corner because of insufficient front-wing downforce would be a superb way to intrigue viewers.
F1 cars are delicate beasts. Small cameras, like the current Hero 4, would need to be mounted in an aerodynamically sound way. As a whole though, the cameras would play well with the sport.
Diver’s point of view or watching a close-up of the rear wing splitting when hitting a drag reduction system (DRS) zone can add to viewer value.
And the pits can be just as exciting. F1 already features an absurdly cool overhead view of driver pit stops. But strap a GoPro to the helmet of a crew member, and you’re making some TV magic.
But as sweet as sweet as Formula 1 may be, it’s not the be-all, end-all for GoPro.
GoPro and the Big Four
Surely, sports like football, baseball, and basketball can learn from not only the way F1 uses compelling camera shots, but they can follow the road map that the NHL partnership is creating.
But while fans would be excited to see a first person POV of Marshawn Lynch going all beast mode on a defense, the NFL is a lot more concerned with head protection than head-mounted camera footage.
It’s simply unrealistic to mount a GoPro to a football player’s head during a game. The NFL could take a page out of the NHL’s book by weaving pre-recorded footage into live broadcasts. This then becomes a matter of relying on deeper storytelling to mesh everything together.
This is where outside the box thinking comes in.
There’s always the option of strapping a Hero 4 to a drone and tracking some great overhead shots of Beast Mode hitting a hole between the guard, and tackle and dragging the secondary into the end zone.
A company called Airdog has the right idea. While this brand has yet to become a heavy hitter, they did run a successful Kickstarter campaign to fund their Airleash tech.
With the Airleash strapped to say, LeBron James, the Airdog drone (equipped with a GoPro) would easily track the All-Star small forward down court on a fast-break.
Airdog technology has a lot of potential, and perhaps other companies can build upon the idea: imagine a drone tracking a fly ball to center and watching Andrew McCutchen making a diving catch from above, all while sitting in your couch watching in sweet, sweet 4k.
This eye in the sky may be GoPro’s key to a future in the big four. Although, they can always fall back on their roots.
Founded in Surf, Adaptable to the Future
Falling back on their roots is exactly what the company has done with their on-demand style channels.
GoPro is steadily unveiling their own app channels on platforms like Xbox One, LG smart TVs, and Virgin America. The latest to get the sports channel bid is Roku, making sports like surfing, snowboarding, skydiving, and wingsuit flying readily available to every Roku subscriber.
GoPro’s channel involves playlists hand-picked by GoPro, themselves, a favorite videos section, a digital store, and even a section that informs viewers which GoPro products were used to shoot certain videos.
What makes their app channels so cool is the fact that everything is shot with the compact HD cameras. The sports moments that are captured are unforgettable.
Typically atypical, most of the sports featured are off kilter and free spirited. While you will find NHL videos, watching first person footage of a wingsuit diver can nearly pump adrenaline through the viewers veins.
GoPros are meant to capture life, experience, and sports better than any other camera on the market.
Ingenuity has brought GoPro this far. With a few year’s time and some creative innovation, there’s no doubt that GoPro can change the way viewers watch live broadcasts of the four major professional leagues.
And when that day comes, GoPro will become a Hero in the eyes of sports fans everywhere.