THE RUGBY FOOTBALL UNION (RFU) and IBM have struck a five-year partnership agreement, which will see the computer products and services giant provide fans with player performance analytics – and the Union with a “transformational” Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.
Under the deal, IBM becomes the Official Analytics Partner for the RFU and will implement an analytical tool to provide fans with real-time insights into the game, including information about individual performance by players called the IBM TryTracker.
In a first for rugby, IBM’s predictive analytics software will analyse historic and current rugby data provided by Opta, the sports data provider, to supply valuable in-game stats and predictive analytics.
This technology builds on systems already in use in global tennis tournaments such as Wimbledon, The Australian Open and The US Open.
As well as providing the analytics for IBM TryTracker, the agreement includes the implementation of a CRM transformational plan for the RFU.
“Using IBM Analytics will allow the RFU to better understand information on rugby fans, their needs and preferences, to enable the organisation to communicate with supporters and participants in a more personalised way,” the RFU said.
The December issue of the Sports Marketing Frontiers newsletter revealed that a bespoke IBM CRM system was also being installed at Arsenal FC.
By Matthew Glendinning
Follow Matthew on Twitter: @mattglen