Teamworks: Revolutionising the digital space in football innovation

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Teamworks

Teamworks is a provider of innovative cost and time saving software solutions for football clubs and multiple sporting codes.

Founded in 2006 by Zach Maurides and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, Teamworks is available on a single and integrated platform and the service suite supplies specialised applications to assist recruiting, development, management, individual branding, and community building, they continue to broaden its global presence with staff across ten countries and offices in cities such as London and Brisbane.

In a day and age where business operations have become equally as significant as the on-field performance, now more than ever football has transformed into a multifaceted sport. This has made clubs fast-track the process for the use of technology being integrated to support the many functions to assist the world game.

The digital adaptation of tracking and data management methodologies has given the green light for clubs to realise a new systemised structure and evolve expertise in multiple areas of sport science and coaching.

In the long run, upcoming and modern technologies have approached with the required strategies to the shifting of culture changes that have vastly enhanced on-field performances as well as operational outcomes.

Some of the teams that have successfully adopted to find improve efficiency and drive performances are EFL Championship team Reading Football Club who are using Teamworks Hub product and Premier League team Crystal Palace that are using Smartabase.

Teamworks has eight products powering over 6,000 sports organisations around the world using their features, with their services including Hub, INFLCR, Notemeal, Whistle, Smartabase, Retain, Pulse and Communities. Each one is tailored to what type of product will boost a club’s aspirations.

Whether it is empowering student athlete success using the Retain application, being the leading nutrition platform for athlete performance by using the Notemeal application or utilising the HUB application for scheduling, communication and collaboration with athletes and staff about practice, meetings and everything in between, Teamworks is the one stop shop for everything you could need for operating a sports team.

By working amongst with the Premier League, the innovative software solutions also works with NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, MLS, MLL, and AFL, the technologies for that of Teamworks are also used to cover a wide spectrum of professional and well-known companies.

Teamworks partner with the aforementioned organisations but the company bases themselves around their customer, which is the athletes as far as the technology is concerned, making sure they become empowered in the right way as they have the ability to change the world in a positive way.

The company prides itself in its core values which is honesty, humility, hard work, commitment, exceptionalism and innovation.

The semi-professional clubs in the NPL nationwide should utilise a solutions provider like Teamworks to make their day-to-day operations much easier, considering some clubs wanting to be in the second tier next year. A collaboration with an organisation such as this one will show their ambitions to do what is necessary to put their local club on top.

To find out more information about Teamworks, click here.

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Referees to improve consistency with new UEFA guidelines

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Image credit: UEFA

In a meeting between Chief Refereeing Officers within UEFA and its 55 national associations, enhancing consistency and clarity underpinned the principle goals for the upcoming season.

Improving officiating

Referees – and particularly the usage of VAR – are often at the centre of post-match debates.

As the introduction of new technology into match officiating increases year-on-year, referees are in the spotlight more than ever before. The expectation was that more technology would decrease errors and controversy, but the opposite has proven to be the case.

Which is why the agreement and alignment between European nations marks a key step in the future of match officiating; the meeting between UEFA, its national associations and a representative of the International Football Association Board (IFAB) displays intention and commitment to ensuring future in-game decisions are clear, not controversial.

Meeting chair and UEFA Director for Refereeing, Roberto Rosetti, outlined why the agreement will have a vital impact on the future of European football, both domestically and internationally.

“The fact that all 55 national associations and UEFA have agreed on guidelines towards a more consistent approach to the application of the Laws of the Game marks a significant milestone,” Rosetti said.

“It will help improve the understanding of refereeing decisions among players, clubs and supporters and all stakeholders in the game.”

“For the popularity of football it is essential to remove all doubt from the game and ensure that the laws are applied with clarity.”

 

Limiting technology use

A widespread criticism of match officiating in recent years is the regularity with which VAR intervenes and interrupts match tempo.

The issue, however, is not that VAR can review decisions – in fact, this summer’s FIFA World Cup displayed an effective use of VAR during a case of mistaken identity, in which a player received a yellow card offence for a foul committed by an opposition player. In this regard, VAR was a vital part of ensuring a simulation offence did not go unpunished.

Frustration, however, grows when the use of VAR goes beyond checking “clear and obvious” errors. Lengthy replays, a multitude of angle-checking clips and the disruption of game flow all contribute to feelings of frustration among fans.

But recent amdendments aim to limit this in the upcoming season. VAR is an essential part of fair officiating, but responsibility must lie with the referee.

The new rules introduced by the IFAB are available here, with further initiatives to follow from UEFA in the coming weeks.

FIFA sparks widespread backlash with private investment proposal

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Image credit: BBC Sport

In a shock announcement made on Tuesday this week, FIFA revealed plans to create a subsidiary known as FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) to manage commercial and event operations for major competitions, including the World Cup. FIFA promises to reinvest all benefits back into the game, but the plan is receiving widespread criticism from governing bodies and governments around the world.

 

“Unleashing” football’s commercial power

Following the huge financial success of this summer’s FIFA World Cup, FIFA President Gianni Infantino indicated plans to “unleash the commercial potential and opportunity” at FIFA’s disposal.

Indeed, it appears Infantino is wasting no time in capitalising on the tournament’s success, which generated AUD 21 billion (USD 15 billion) for FIFA.

An eye-watering number. A tournament record. And, apparently, still not enough.

Tuesday’s announcement made clear the intention to bring commercial rights under a new subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). This, according to FIFA, could generate AUD 6 billion (USD 4.2 billion) of initial capital with all net benefits going back into grassroots and infrastructure development for Member Associations (MA) through the FIFA Forward programme.

The money would be raised by selling minority stakes in FFE to private third-party investors, although FIFA has outlined that it will retain “sole control of FFE”.

The venture has a reported valuation of AUD 29 billion (USD 20 billion), prompting questions and backlash from around the world over who will actually benefit from the finances – and whether anyone should benefit at all.

 

What are critics saying?

On the surface, the principle of generating more money for MAs and investing into grassroots, coaching, women’s and youth football is a worthwhile ambition.

Currently, each MA receives AUD 11.5 million (USD 8 million) per year from FIFA Forward. FIFA affirms that, should the proposal go through, this funding would increase to AUD 29 million (USD 20 million) between 2027-2030.

However, several governing bodies, including UEFA, Concacaf and the English FA, are adamantly fighting the plans.

“This crosses a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross,” UEFA said via an official statement on social media.

“The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially,” UEFA continued.

“None of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA’s to sell.”

Concacaf also expressed deep concern over the reports, citing a distinct lack of warning and due process from FIFA prior to the announcement.

“We share the disappointment of many within our region and the game that this level of detail has been designed and shared publicly before any discussion with the relevant governance bodies and stakeholders has taken place,” Concacaf said via official statement.

“As leaders within football, we are custodians of the game. Collectively, FIFA, the Confederations and every Member Association have a responsibility to always act in the best interests of the sport.”

Further concerns also centre around the company set to lead the proposed investor group – Thrive Eternal. Founded by Joshua Kushner, the brother of US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, Thrive Eternal’s role in the venture opens the door to potential conflicts of interests – and emboldens criticisms that Infantino’s relationship with the US President is compromising his leading role in football’s international governing body.

 

Football was never about the money

Investing into the game is vital to football’s sustained future, especially for nations without the financial power to fund it independent of football’s governing body.

Nobody will argue that supporting the entire football pyramid – from grassroots to professional, men’s and women’s, youth and para, playing and coaching – should benefit from the financial might of the sport’s elite.

And FIFA is promising such benefits for all – arriving in the form of tens of millions of dollars – and stemming from third-party investors intrigued by the commercial value of the beautiful game.

But this is exactly where the venture’s flaws start to appear.

Rhetoric about increasing football’s commercial power following the 2026 World Cup leads the governing body down a slippery slope to a sport which prioritises money over integrity, due process and the fans who uphold it week-in week-out.

Football – from its very first beginnings as a working class sport – was never about the money.

Although modern commercialisation has turned clubs into businesses and players into tradable assets, everyone within the pyramid is a custodian of the game.

The game is not a product to sell – especially by those entrusted to uphold its integrity.

 

What happens now?

FIFA stated its intentions to only proceed with the venture if it receives support from the majority of MAs. While many are already uniting in opposition to the proposal, there are national governing bodies who have vocalised their support, including the Czech FA.

UEFA, on the other hand, is set to hold an emergency meeting with its 55 members to discuss a potential boycott of future tournaments.

But with a deadline of September 19 for MAs to accept the proposal, and the promise of a payment worth AUD 57.5 million (USD 40 million) if they do, the next eight weeks will reveal the future of the game and the nature of its global governance.

FIFA’s plan, although laced with promises of investment, development and growth for all, has instead kicked off a contest to save the game’s soul – or change it forever.

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