Big Data meets Big Game: How Sports Teams are Winning with AI

Picture this: tens of millions of sports fans eagerly awaiting the biggest game of the year, and everyone wants to be part of the action. That's the Super Bowl, and AI is cooking up something special to make it even better. To get ahead in the game and win more fans, teams need to shine in the brand, fanbase, and revenue departments. AI is not just a fancy buzzword in the world of sports. Even back in 2017, big companies like IBM were talking about how AI could shake things up. Today, the NFL is already using AI to make sports safer and more entertaining. They’ve even got a special AI-powered app called Amazon’s MemoryDB on it too! . Now, there’s a new player in town. A company called Elevate has launched a new system called EPIC. This platform is designed to help sports organizations make the most out of the data they have. EPIC is a cloud-based system that combines insights, ticket management, and property analytics to help teams understand their fans better. This understanding can help determine seating options, ticket prices, and fan retention. The platform has already been used by over 25 organizations. Elevate started back in 2018, and with the new wave of AI, they’re now doing even more with data. You might be thinking, Man, data is just numbers and facts, right? Well, it can be way more powerful when it’s used right. Imagine if you don’t have to guess about your fans but you can use data to predict and meet their needs. That’s exactly what Elevate is doing. Elevate has data for 220 million people already in the database. How does Elevate make this work? Knowing that storing data is just the first step, Elevate has set out to ensure that this data is meaningful and useful. EPIC organizes data into a vector database, which makes it easier to use for making decisions. Elevate's CIO, Jim Caruso, explains that this isn’t as simple as flipping a switch. It’s a process that involves testing different approaches to find the best way to use the data accurately and efficiently. EPIC has a variety of AI-powered applications, from ticket pricing to understanding different types of fans. These tools are powered by a large language model called Anthropic Claude Haiku 3. 5, which has been tailored to Elevate’s data. This model helps to answer questions and provide insights based on different personas of fans. For example, it helps to decide who should sit where in the stadium and how to market to different groups. The system also uses a tool called XGBoost to help with numerical data for ticket pricing. Imagine you’re selling tickets for a big game. You need to know how much to charge and who’s likely to buy them. By converting historical and real-time data into features, Elevate can predict ticket sales and help teams make the right decisions. They’re using Amazon Sagemaker for this too. With AI, sports teams are getting smarter, and fans are getting more personal experiences. The Tennessee Titans are already using Elevate to get ready for their new stadium opening in 2027. They’re setting sales goals, understanding fans, and exceeding targets for premium seating. But it’s not just the NFL benefiting from this. College athletics are also getting in on the action. The University of Illinois is using EPIC to enhance fan experiences. When it comes to sports, more than numbers and data are at play. The fun matters too. With AI, teams can make smarter decisions, enhance fan experiences, and ultimately create a more engaging atmosphere. This means more people will want to watch and participate.