SportsTech Weekly: Major Acquisitions and AI Integration Accelerate Sports Innovation
Week 23 of 2025 features significant M&A activity, breakthrough AI applications, and strategic partnerships across global sports properties
Hello sports tech enthusiasts 👋🏼 Welcome to Regen Sports, your twice-weekly deep dive into the intersection of sports and technology. Every Monday, catch up on the week's most important developments in sports innovation, and every Thursday, explore in-depth analysis of trends, companies, and technological breakthroughs reshaping the future of sports.
Before we get into it, if you missed last week’s developments, you can find the recap of week 22's sports tech highlights.
This past week demonstrates the sports tech sector's continued consolidation and innovation, with major acquisitions totaling over $30 million and AI applications reaching new levels of sophistication across multiple sports.
Catapult Group's acquisition of Perch and Hudl's completion of the Titan Sports acquisition highlight the ongoing consolidation in performance analytics, while strategic partnerships with global technology leaders like Sony, Visa, and Capgemini signal deeper enterprise-level integration.
The weeks continue to showcase remarkable AI advancement, from Neural Concept's F1 aerodynamics optimisation to RII Sports Technology's dual AI product launch for football coaching.
Investment momentum remains strong with notable funding including Tesonet's investment in FPRO, while broadcast innovations like MLS's first goal-line technology implementation and PGA Tour's "smart tracer" demonstrate technology's expanding role in enhancing both competition integrity and fan experience.
Without further ado;
PARTNERSHIPS & COLLABORATIONS 🤝🏼
Image source: Sony
Sony announced a new multiyear global technology partnership with the National Hockey League (NHL), becoming an Official NHL Technology Partner
Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team will use Neural Concept, the AI platform, to accelerate the team’s car design and optimise aerodynamic performance
SailGP’s exclusive U.S. 5G partner, T-Mobile, is returning to the Mubadala New York Sail GP, providing immersive fan experiences and real-time insights for teams
Genius Sports announced a partnership with TV measurement company iSpot, integrating their Unified and Outcomes measurement tools and data insights into FANHub
Infosys, in partnership with the French Tennis Federation (FFT) announced a new line-up of AI-first fan features, leveraging Infosys Topaz for Roland-Garros 2025
FIFA announced Saudi’s investment venture arm, PIF, as an official partner of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™, expanding PIF’s global footprint in sports
Monumental Sports & Entertainment and Cisco announced a new partnership, leveraging Cisco’s technology solutions to create engaging experience for fans at MSE’s new arena
Capgemini announced a new 5-year partnership with the Tour De France and Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, which will include 14 cycling races, becoming the Official Technology Partner
Pitchcom, a communication platform in baseball, announced a partnership with Perfect Game, a youth baseball company, providing MLB technology to improve communication
England Athletics announced a strategic partnership with Ochy – the AI-powered biomechanics platform, to help runners improve their technique
Cosm announce a partnership with PBR (Professional Bull Riders), showcasing four PBR Teams league events this summer in their Dallas and LA experiential venues
Image source: Two Circles
MotoGP™ announced a multi-year partnership with Two Circles, the sports marketing agency, to help grow its global fanbase in the US and UK markets
TDK Corporation announced its collaboration with World Athletics to enhance the attraction of the javelin throw, becoming an official partner of the Championships Tokyo25
The Saudi-backed LIV Golf Tour announced a new partnership with consumer relations management platform Salesforce, serving as the Global AI Partner of the golf league
The Ladies' Professional Golf Association has signed a new multi-year partnership with Sage, the business management solutions company, serving as the LPGA's Official Finance Software Partner
FuboTV Inc. and DAZN, announced a multi-year partnership in which both sports streaming companies will distribute their linear channels on each other's US platforms
Motorola Solutions has partnered with the PGA of America and Ryder Cup Europe golfing bodies, becoming the Official Safety Technology Supplier of the latter
Why This Matters: Sony's multiyear partnership with the NHL represents a strategic alliance that could revolutionise hockey broadcasting and fan engagement. Sony's expertise in imaging, audio, and broadcast technology combined with the NHL's global reach creates opportunities for innovations in sports presentation, from enhanced broadcast quality to immersive fan experiences. This partnership signals the NHL's commitment to technological advancement and could establish new standards for how professional hockey is captured, produced, and consumed across multiple platforms globally.
FUNDING & INVESTMENTS 💰
Image source: Tesonet
Tesonet is investing €2 million in the Lithuanian-based sports tech startup FPRO, helping expand professional training opportunities in youth football
Zenith Sports received new investment from Eoniq.fund to accelerate its international expansion in online sports training
Why This Matters: Tesonet's investment in FPRO highlights the growing recognition of youth football development as a technology-driven business opportunity. This investment could accelerate the digitisation of youth football training across Europe, providing data-driven insights and professional-level coaching tools to younger players. As traditional football academies face increasing costs and accessibility challenges, technology platforms like FPRO represent a scalable solution that could democratise high-quality training and potentially identify talent that might otherwise be overlooked in traditional scouting systems.
MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS 🪜
Image source: Hudl
Hudl, the cloud-based technology firm for the sports industry, announced the completion of its acquisition of Titan Sports, expanding its performance tracking offerings
Catapult Group International has acquired athlete monitoring company Perch in a deal worth up to an estimated $28 million, advancing its Performance & Health vertical
Teamworks, the Operating System for Sports, announced the acquisition of Telemetry Sports, a player tracking analytics company for American football
Why This Matters: Catapult Group's acquisition represents a consolidation in the athlete monitoring space that could reshape how performance data is collected and analysed across professional sports. By combining Catapult’s motion analysis capabilities with Perch's strength training monitoring technology, this acquisition creates a comprehensive athlete performance ecosystem. This integration could provide coaches and sports scientists with insights into the relationship between training loads and performance outcomes, potentially transforming injury prevention and performance optimisation strategies across multiple sports.
PRODUCT LAUNCHES & TECH INNOVATIONS 🔬
Image source: PFL
The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has launched a new direct-to-consumer (DTC) app to stream live fights from its regional leagues, with the platform being free for US users
RII Sports Technology announced the release of two new AI products, Scout AI and Graphite AI, addressing the needs of football programmes for football coaches
Goal-line technology was used in an MLS stadium for the first time at BMO Stadium, during the FIFA Club World Cup play-in game between LAFC and Club América
At the RBC Canadian Open, the PGA Tour debuted a new shot tracker, “smart tracer”, on its broadcasts, an on-screen graphic that changes in colour while shots are airborne to determine the ball’s most likely outcome
After successfully meeting the Bundesliga’s requirements, uniqFEED has received league-wide approval to deploy its AI-powered AdApt virtual advertising technology
FIBA, in collaboration Victoria University experts, held its first-ever player tracking solutions test event to develop clear standards for performance and quality
The FIFA Club World Cup™ will leverage a range of tech innovations to enhance fan experiences, improve transparency and streamline operations
Why This Matters: The PGA Tour's debut of the "smart tracer" shot tracker represents a significant advancement in real-time sports analytics and broadcast enhancement. This colour-changing graphic that predicts ball trajectory outcomes in real-time demonstrates how AI and predictive modelling can enhance viewer engagement without disrupting the traditional viewing experience. The technology could transform golf broadcasting by providing immediate context for shot difficulty and outcome probability, potentially making the sport more accessible to casual viewers while adding analytical depth for enthusiasts.
FINAL THOUGHTS 💭
As week 23 concludes, we're witnessing significant consolidation in the sports tech sector alongside breakthrough innovations in AI applications and broadcast technology. The substantial M&A activity, led by Catapult's Perch acquisition, demonstrates the industry's maturation and the strategic value of comprehensive performance monitoring platforms.
The integration of AI across diverse applications—from F1 aerodynamics to football coaching to golf shot prediction—highlights technology's expanding role in both competitive performance and fan engagement. Strategic partnerships with major technology companies like Sony and Cisco signal deeper enterprise-level integration that could fundamentally reshape how sports are produced, distributed, and experienced globally. As always, stay tuned for next week's roundup as we continue tracking the transformative developments reshaping the global sports technology landscape.
Track the Trends. Spot the plays. Shape the game.
Thanks for reading,
Dean
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