The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has entered into a partnership with performance analytics company Catapult Sports.
Under the agreement, 2,650 ‘Playertek by Catapult’ athlete tracking products will be supplied to CAF teams to help optimise performance, reduce injury risk and qualify return to play processes.
CAF said the agreement, the length of which was not disclosed, marks a “significant investment into elite performance technology”.
CAF will work with Catapult to provide technical support and guidance to 54 CAF teams.
Anthony Baffoe, CAF’s deputy general secretary in charge of football, said: “The choice of partnership with Catapult is not fortuitous. CAF wants to move safety issues forward at all levels – the health of our players is one of them. Monitoring the performance of our players is important to ensure that African football reaches the global level it deserves. With Catapult services, we will be able to analyse every move each player makes and interpret their impact on their physical condition and ultimately on the teams’ performances.
“Having a scientific and reliable database will allow the technical teams of our member federations to take the right decisions. African footballers have talent, but we have to challenge our own limits.”