WSL Football set for major technology advancement with Sportable

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Image credit: Sportable

The Barclays Women’s Super League (WSL) will collaborate with Nike and Sportable, a data and analytics company in the sports landscape, making it the first football league in the world to use advanced tracking technology.

 

Where innovation meets football

Sportable’s Connected ball technology will feature in Nike’s Official WSL Matchballs, promising a new level of insight and analysis into the game.

The product is currently undergoing a trial and test process, but may launch at an even larger scale from the start of the 2026/27 season. Potentially operating at every Barclays WSL match in the very near future, Sportable’s cutting-edge technology stands as a springboard for the future intersection between data technology and the beautiful game.

Moreover, Sportable CEO, Dugald Macdonald, expressed his excitement at what the product can bring for the women’s game.

“The opportunity to create a consistent, data-rich view of performance, from training pitches to stadiums, is truly groundbreaking and we are excited to help unlock the next level of insight for teams across the league and their fans via an enhanced, data-rich, broadcast experience,” Macdonald said via official media release.

Furthermore, with analytics and data taking a leading role within clubs to maximise performance, Sportable are providing clubs in the WSL with a vital tool in an elite, highly competitive landscape.

 

What does the technology provide?

Certified by the FIFA Quality Programme for Electronic Performance Tracking Systems (EPTS), Sportable’s Connected ball and player tracking system presents many benefits to clubs and athletes alike.

For example, across both training and competition, aspects such as ball speed, spin, flight, high intensity plays, team shape, tactical patterns and off-the-ball actions are all measured. Therefore, Sportable’s technology will play an essential role in backing current and future athletes with the information they need to maximise their potential.

“Nike’s new partnership with us is built on innovation and putting players first,” outlined Chief Revenue Officer for WSL Football, Zarah Al-Kudcy.

“Their desire to elevate the role of the ball through Sportable’s technology will enable us to provide enhanced performance data to our clubs as well as tell richer stories to our fans. We are excited to be the first football league in the world to use this technology.”

 

Read here for more information about Sportable.

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The Man Who Built a Women’s Football Program from Nothing is now an Award-Winning Gender Equity Leader

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Image Credit: Football Victoria

Eight years ago, Spring Hills Football Club did not have a girls’ team. Today it has one of the most recognised women’s programs in Melbourne’s west, a senior NPLW side, and a head coach who has just been named Gender Equity Leader of the Year at the Melton City Council Volunteer Achievement Awards.

Tom Markovski, Spring Hills’ NPLW Head Coach, received the award at a ceremony coinciding with National Volunteer Week, recognised for his community leadership, promotion of gender equality and commitment to advancing the status of women and people of all genders in sport. The recognition comes from outside the football community entirely, awarded by a local council celebrating volunteers across every sector of civic life in one of Melbourne’s fastest-growing regions.

Building from scratch

When Markovski arrived at Spring Hills, women’s football at the club did not exist. His first act was to champion the establishment of the club’s first all-girls team, a process that required persuading a club culture built around men’s football that the investment was worth making.

Women’s football in community clubs has historically struggled to access the same facilities, scheduling priority, coaching resources and institutional support as the men’s game. Clubs have been slow to invest in programs whose return is less immediately visible than a senior men’s premiership, and in a growing outer-suburban community like Melton, where volunteer capacity is finite and demand across every program is high, the case for building something new always has to compete with the urgency of maintaining what already exists.

Markovski made the case anyway, and kept making it across eight years of coaching senior and junior NPL teams while simultaneously building the structural foundations of a women’s program designed to outlast any individual’s involvement. The club’s first all-girls team became multiple junior girls teams. Those junior teams created the pipeline for a senior women’s side. The senior women’s side created visible pathways for younger players to see where the game could take them within their own club.

The outcome is a program that Spring Hills now holds up as central to its identity rather than supplementary to it. The club has become a leader in female participation in Melbourne’s west, and recently made history within the NPLW Victoria structure by fielding junior teams coached entirely by female coaches, a milestone that reflects the depth of the program Markovski helped build.

What the Award Recognises

The Melton City Council’s decision to name Markovski its Gender Equity Leader of the Year places his work in a frame that extends beyond football. Melton is one of the fastest-growing local government areas in Australia, a diverse and rapidly expanding community where the institutions that bring people together, like schools, councils, sporting clubs, carry an outsized responsibility for social cohesion.

Mayor Cr. Lara Carli, speaking at the awards ceremony, reflected on the role volunteers play in communities like Melton’s. “Volunteering creates friendships, strengthens communities and builds a sense of belonging,” she said. “It helps people feel connected, supported and valued, and those things are more important than ever in a growing and diverse community like ours.”

For the girls now playing football at Spring Hills who were not playing anywhere eight years ago, Markovski’s contribution is not abstract. It is the specific and concrete fact of having somewhere to play, someone to coach them, and a pathway that leads somewhere.

GIS Masterclass: Fan Engagement and Marketing with Terry Lynam and Karen Grega

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Image Credit: Global Institute of Sport

The Global Institute of Sport recently hosted a masterclass on Fan Engagement and Marketing, bringing together two industry leaders to tackle the field’s most pressing issues.

The Global Institute of Sport (GIS), which offers a Master’s in Sports Business and Sports Analytics through the University of Newcastle, regularly holds masterclasses with industry leaders as part of its curriculum.

The latest focused on fan engagement and marketing, covering two key themes: the growing tension between live sport and online streaming, and the role of data in shaping the fan experience.

The panelists 

Terry Lynam recently concluded her role as General Manager of Fan Experience and Events at Football Australia, overseeing the AFC Women’s Asian Cup on home soil.

Karen Grega is an experienced sports management consultant with a multi-code background. She currently represents Football Coaches Australia (FCA) and Heartbeat of Football, and has previously worked with Sydney Cricket Ground, Venues NSW and Sydney FC.

Live Sport and social media.

Terry Lynam opened with a pointed statement — one she acknowledged would be controversial. She argued that the sense of community unique to live sport is being eroded by social media and ‘snippet’ consumption.

Central to her concern is how marketing teams are failing to segment their audiences, treating casual online viewers the same as matchday fans.

“If they aren’t spending money on the sport we shouldn’t count them as spectators to the same level as match going fans.”

“What we want to consider as marketeers is how much we want to give away and how much we want our live sport element to remain,” Lynam said.

Grega echoed the sentiment, arguing fan engagement ultimately comes down to human connection. “It’s not rocket science.”

She suggested the industry revisit the concept of sport as a family outing to recapture that communal experience.

Data Driving Decisions

Both panelists highlighted data and analytics as central to modern fan engagement.

Grega recalled the introduction of computerised turnstiles as a turning point, enabling teams to track crowd movements and optimise staffing and entry times.

She also noted the continued value of fan surveys in informing marketing decisions.

Lynam pointed to ticketing technology as a significant data frontier.

Modern platforms like Ticketmaster’s ticket-transfer system now provide detailed customer insights.

“It allows us to have a better understanding of who’s getting the ticket and how they transport themselves there or when they arrive,”

“We can personalise their journey and sell content to them,” Lynam commented. 

The discussion also touched on data sourced from social media and on-field player tracking, as well as interactive stadium technology gaining traction in the US.

This included holographic assistants and player headset interactions that bring a broadcast-style experience to live events.

Activations That Educate

Activations rounded out the masterclass, with Lynam detailing how she created a fan zone on a modest budget for the Women’s Asian Cup.

The activation featured charitable partnerships focused on women’s health, including Heartbeat of Football, Endometriosis Australia and Share the Dignity.

“I’m very hopeful that that type of idea gets pushed through on other sporting events,” Lynam said.

Grega elaborated on the Heartbeat of Football activation, highlighting how a competitive element built around CPR and heart health kept fans engaged while also educating them.

“The whole health hub ticked all the boxes — it was immersive, it was interactive, it was there for all ages, both sexes.”

“That sort of blueprint is one that should be replicated as much as possible,” Explained Karen Grega

The masterclass offered students and industry professionals a valuable window into contemporary sports marketing.

As the competition for fan attention intensifies, the blend of live experience, smart data use, and purposeful activations can help define the next chapters of fan engagement.

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