INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Video assisted referees (what you'll hear refereed to as VAR) has been the one of the most controversial elements of the World Cup 2018, but
Back in 2014, the Apple Watch was only a teaser announced on stage by Tim Cook and was yet to be on anyone's wrist, while watches such as
the Moto 360, Samsung Gear S and Pebble Steel were among the bestselling smartwatches of the year.Now in 2018, the whole space has changed
It may be there is more tech being used for training in anticipation of the competition, but here we're focusing on technology used in the
actual games and training just before the competition.PlayerTek by CatapultImage 1 of 2The rear of the PlayerTek vest with the tracker being
insertedImage 2 of 2The full PlayerTek vest that you can buyThis smart vest you can see above is from a company called Catapult and has a
Egypt, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland and Uruguay have been using the vests to track some vital stats that allows backroom staff to interrogate
player data more than ever before.It was a last minute decision from FIFA, but in early June 2018 the organization deemed the tech as safe
for players to wear during official matches and most wearing it will have been using it throughout training too.The Playertek vest comes
records information such as the distance covered in a match, where each player traveled and how often they sprinted
data can be broken down by the team at a later date to try and mathematically work out a way to improve their strategy.Hublot Big Bang
Referee 2018 World Cup watchA demo of what it looks like on the Hublot watch when a goal is scoredYou may have spotted large smartwatches on
referee's wrists during the World Cup so far
This isn't about sporting a bit of sponsored bling, but a way to offer quick communication of the VAR technology directly to each ref's
It's expensive though, and its main USP is the fact it can communicate World Cup information - a feature that will be irrelevant at the end
of the competition.Referees are fed data about goals scored directly to their wrist within a second of a goal being scored
For those not on the pitch, it also feeds data on when matches are set to take place, when goals are scored (even in other games) and
clearly sporting the device during the England vs Panama game earlier in the tournament
AU$6800.Electronic Performance and Tracking SystemsAnother one for the players here as FIFA has introduced its own Electronic Performance
each player and this way the management team are able to track positioning, passing, pressing and tackles
This is paired with a tablet that shows the game on a 30-second delay.Only three tablets are given to each team, though
here is it should limit overexertion for players, which is a big worry especially when some teams are playing in an entirely different
like the referee's Hublot smartwatch, this may be one of the most impactful pieces of tech being used throughout the entire
tournament.Trainers with the Adidas micoach tracker on the bottomFitness trackers and smartwatches encourage us to get up off the sofa and
in training and the tournament made a positive impact back at the last World Cup.The German team wore the small tracking devices in practice
sessions to give a full picture of their speed, distance run and heart rate allowing the team to see how each athlete did
The team could then work out better training to hit the weakspots for each team member.Data from training was ultimately what encouraged the
German manager Joachim Low to bring on player Gotze to the World Cup final in 2014
That happened in the 88th minute of the game, and Gotze went on to score the only goal of the game in extra-time winning it for Germany.It
perhaps the introduction of all this new wearable tech means we'll see teams play better in the tournament than
