Technology Transforming the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 Experience - SG Analytics.pdf

How is Cutting-edge
Technology Transforming
the Qatar FIFA World Cup
2022 Experience
The ongoing 2022 tech-driven FIFA World Cup in Qatar is backed
by top innovations ranging from AI offside detection to assistance
for visually impaired fans. While advanced technologies have

dominated the past FIFA World Cups, Qatar has taken it to a
different level.
In 2010, when Qatar was tasked with hosting the 2022 World Cup,
the region started constructing Vision 2020-23 to outline FIFA's
commitment to integrating technology into the tournament. The
idea was to leverage different types of tech-backed innovations to
enhance the game experience for fans on as well as off the field.
After winning the right to host the FIFA World Cup 2022, Qatar has
invested more than $300 billion to build new infrastructure for the
tournaments. For this World Cup, Qatar took the stadium's
technology to a whole new level. They have also employed 5G and
high-speed Wi-Fi across the stadiums will assist in remotely
supervising and keeping a check on the spectators, along with the
traffic movements, as well as maintaining the stadium
temperatures. As many as 15,000 CCTV cameras have been
installed to monitor all eight stadiums to keep track. The team has
employed data analytics and other technologies to respond to
alerts or mishaps.
Some of the integrated technologies involve- offsite detection,
assistive technology for visually impaired fans, cooling technology

for the stadium, and ball with sensors to detect peak game
speeds.
Read more: 2022 FIFA World Cup: Who will Win the Golden Boot?
Top Technological Innovations to See in
Qatar 2022:
1. Advanced Cooling Technology for the newly
built Stadiums
One of the major concerns that the FIFA committee had to tackle
early on was the harsh environmental conditions in Qatar. 7 of the
8 stadiums that are hosting the Qatar World Cup 2022 have
integrated advanced cooling systems to keep the atmosphere
inside the stadium cool.
Qatar has employed advanced refrigeration systems in the
stadiums that were built for the tournament. The refrigeration
technology used inside the stadiums will allow sporting events to
be held all year round in the facilities. The technology is installed in
7 of the 8 stadiums.

The Lusail, built with a capacity for almost 80.000 people, will host
the FIFA World Cup 2022 final. The stadium has a controlled air
conditioning system that comes out through the stands. It will help
stabilize the temperature for the assistants and soccer players.
Sustainable techniques were also used in the construction of
stadiums in Qatar, such as wastewater recycling measures. After
the completion of the FIFA 2022 World Cup, several facilities built
for the tournament will be transformed into spaces for the
community, schools, shops, and sports facilities.
Read more: How FIFA+ Can Revolutionize Sports Streaming?
2. AI Rihla - The Official FIFA 2022 World Cup Ball
The 14th successive football developed for the tournament by
Adidas has an inbuilt sensor to detect peak game speeds. The
official FIFA World Cup 2022 ball - Al Rihla from Adidas, comes with
an inbuilt Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) to detect illegal
positions. The installed sensor sends a data packet 500
times/second to the VAR room. This helps detect the exact
moment the ball is hit with absolute precision.

And all thanks to Artificial Intelligence. The data set collected by
the ball can be processed in seconds. It then sends an alarm to
the VAR referees each time it detects offside. Once this process is
carried out, they will manually review the ball's point of impact
along with the player's position. The resolution of each move likely
takes seconds as the margin of interpretation is reduced
drastically. The semi-automated outside technology also
incorporates an element to detect offside incidents for the inertial
measurement unit (IMU) sensor positioned inside the ball. The
technology integrated into the ball was tested in 2021 at the Arab
Cup as well as the Club World Cup.
Moreover, Adidas's suspension system, used in the ball, will assist
in detecting the kick point with extreme precision. Al Rihla, which
represents "the journey" in Arabic, is encouraged by the culture,
architecture, iconic boats, as well as the Qatar flag.
3. FIFA Player App
Designed and developed by FIFA in collaboration with FIFPRO, the
FIFA Player App will be operated for the first time ever in the 2022

FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The app will provide players with
performance metrics and analysis, along with physical
performance and enhanced football intelligence metrics,
including line-breaking events, receiving locations, and pressure
on the player in possession of the ball.
Read more: 2022 FIFA World Cup Controversy: Should Migrant
Workers be Given Compensation?

4. Semi-automated Offside Technology
Semi-automated offside detecting technology is set to offer
precise detection during the matches at Qatar FIFA World Cup
2022. FIFA has used this new mechanism to identify the football
position, thus helping referees make accurate, fast, and
reproducible offside decisions during the tournament.
The semi-automated offside technology used at the FIFA World
Cup 2022 is set to offer a support tool for video match officials and
on-field officials to help them make accurate offside decisions.
With the assistance of 12 tracking cameras installed in the stadium
and the Al Rihla ball, the technology is set to offer an automatic
offside alert to the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) each time the
ball is played in an offside position.
By combining the limb- and ball-tracking data and artificial
intelligence (AI), the technology will provide an automated offside
alert to the video match officials in the video operation room.
Before informing the on-field referee, the video match officials will
be able to validate the proposed decision by manually checking
the automatically selected kick point along with the automatically
created offside line. This will help reduce the dependence on VAR
replays to understand whether a player is offside.

5. Assistive Technology for Visually Impaired
Football Fans
FIFA integrated Bonocle and Feelix for visually impaired fans. The
Doha-based company Bonocle was established in 2014 by
Abdelrazek Aly and Ramy Soliman. With the help of assistive
technology and transcoding functionality, Bonocle helps visually
impaired individuals to enjoy and experience the World Cup like
everyone else. On the contrary, Feelix Palm, developed by an
Oxford-based company, Feelix, employs tactile palm
communicators to communicate braille-like messages to visually
impaired fans during matches.
Read more: Offsides: How FIFA’s New Semi-Automated
Technology Can Change Football
Final Thoughts
This is the first time that the greatest event in world soccer is being
organized by and played in an Arab country. It is also worth noting

that technological advances like semi-automated offside and a
football with a sensor named the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU)
will be implemented for the first time. With these two new tools,
VAR decisions will be expedited, offering the referee little to zero
margins of error.
Another technological tool that everyone is looking forward to is
the FIFA Player. This is the first time the federation will allow the
players to obtain real-time information on their performance on
the pitch. All this has added to the existing technology and
innovation integrated into the construction of the World Cup venue
stadiums.
In addition to all the tech innovations inside stadiums, Qatar has
employed technology to help surveillance and order outside
sports venues. With 1.5 million visitors to a country of 3 million
inhabitants, security was seen as one of the biggest priorities for
World Cup organizers. They also set up a control center that will
simultaneously monitor all 8 stadiums of the tournament and the
surroundings through 15,000 cameras.
Artificial Intelligence tools have made it possible for the country to
not only control the capacity of all the stadiums but it has also
helped in avoiding public congestion along with supervising the
behavior of the spectators. This detection of irregular behavior will
enable the authorities to act preventively in case of any crisis.
With a presence in New York, San Francisco, Austin, Seattle,
Toronto, London, Zurich, Pune, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, SG
Analytics, a pioneer in Research and Analytics, offers tailor-made
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A leader in the Technology domain, SG Analytics partners with
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Technology Transforming the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 Experience - SG Analytics.pdf

Technology Transforming the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 Experience - SG Analytics.pdf

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Technology Transforming the Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022 Experience - SG Analytics.pdf