AoC Sport has partnered with sports performance analytics Catapult Sports to track and improve teams’ performance across its college network.
England Colleges men’s and women’s national football team players will use Catapult’s PlayerTek wearable technology throughout next season to gain stats and insight on their game to aid team performance and individual player development.
Lauren O’Sullivan, national football development manager at AoC Sport said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Catapult and are really excited by the opportunities this partnership provides for our members, wider stakeholders and, most importantly, the students engaging in sport provision.”
PlayerTek by Catapult is a sports tracking solution that aims to help colleges, semi-pro teams and schools receive access to the same standard of technology as the professionals.
The solution tracks up to 50 metrics and is designed to measure and optimise performance, tracking speed, player load, distance, power and more.
O’Sullivan continued: “We look forward to working with Catapult to maximise the education, employment and health benefits of the PlayerTek technology across team performance, athlete development and curriculum delivery.”
AoC Sport is the lead organisation for sport and physical activity in 16+ education in the UK, and has over 235 member colleges under its umbrella.
Conor Branson, head of football sales at PlayerTek, commented: “AoC Sport is a brilliant association to be partnered with, and we look forward to showcasing the benefits of PlayerTek amongst their college teams over the next year.
“The opportunity to educate students in performance technology is one we are keen to embrace, and we are excited to develop future footballing talent across the UK, both in the classroom and on the field.”
PlayerTek’s presence at the AoC Sport National Championships on 26-28 April will provide an opportunity for attending college teams to view and test the technology.
PlayerTek will also be speaking at the AoC Sport and ECFA National Conference on 5 June in an effort to demonstrate the value of performance tracking in the sports industry.
